Norges Bank Buys Shares of 34,746,743 Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 34,746,743 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $2,493,426,000. Norges Bank owned about 9.16% of Equity Residential as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vert Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Equity Residential by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 150,245 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $10,782,000 after buying an additional 10,472 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in Equity Residential in the third quarter worth $923,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,707 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP bought a new position in shares of Equity Residential during the fourth quarter worth about $321,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 119.8% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 483,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,714,000 after acquiring an additional 263,622 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $71.52 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $70.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $59.48 and a 1 year high of $78.84. The company has a market capitalization of $27.16 billion, a PE ratio of 26.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.6925 per share. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.51.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equity Residential news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $309,425.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,108 shares in the company, valued at $1,016,622.48. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.