Carret Asset Management LLC Sells 4,115 Shares of Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME)

Carret Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME) by 16.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,350 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,115 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Elme Communities were worth $311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Elme Communities by 50.8% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 169,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,979,000 after acquiring an additional 57,038 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Elme Communities in the third quarter valued at about $975,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Elme Communities by 3.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,719,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,241,000 after purchasing an additional 53,505 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in Elme Communities in the third quarter valued at about $541,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Elme Communities by 64.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 177,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,121,000 after purchasing an additional 69,835 shares during the last quarter. 87.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on ELME. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Elme Communities from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Truist Financial upgraded Elme Communities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Elme Communities from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $19.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th.

Elme Communities Price Performance

Shares of ELME stock opened at $17.24 on Friday. Elme Communities has a fifty-two week low of $12.81 and a fifty-two week high of $18.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -123.11 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.58. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $15.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.50.

Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.26. Elme Communities had a negative return on equity of 1.18% and a negative net margin of 5.42%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Elme Communities will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Elme Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 19th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 19th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.18%. Elme Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently -514.29%.

About Elme Communities

Elme Communities is committed to elevating what home can be for middle-income renters by providing a higher level of quality, service, and experience. The Company is a multifamily real estate investment trust that owns and operates approximately 9,400 apartment homes in the Washington, DC metro and the Atlanta metro regions, and owns approximately 300,000 square feet of commercial space.