Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 139 Shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,181 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 139 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities were worth $1,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAA. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 107,133 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $16,559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,061 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $329,000. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 3,071 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $475,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,936 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $454,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. Finally, Triasima Portfolio Management inc. bought a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 4th quarter worth $278,000. 93.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on MAA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $159.50 to $168.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mid-America Apartment Communities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.45.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:MAA opened at $157.05 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.36 billion, a PE ratio of 35.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.08. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.23 and a 52-week high of $167.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $153.27 and a 200 day moving average of $155.70.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.53% and a net margin of 24.03%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $1.515 dividend. This is a boost from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 135.27%.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.