ING Groep NV Sells 112 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

ING Groep NV decreased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 18,995 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 112 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $4,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AVB. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,074,269 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $429,145,000 after purchasing an additional 13,631 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,980,675 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $367,534,000 after acquiring an additional 249,400 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.5% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,847,511 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $342,824,000 after acquiring an additional 8,809 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 11.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,183,121 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $244,776,000 after purchasing an additional 126,055 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.1% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 521,815 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $96,781,000 after purchasing an additional 29,953 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AVB. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $226.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the transaction, the director now owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AVB stock opened at $229.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 2.03. The company’s 50-day moving average is $226.26 and its 200-day moving average is $212.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.63 billion, a PE ratio of 31.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $166.60 and a 1 year high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. The firm had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.66 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.