Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Rating Increased to Hold at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $296.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Citigroup upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “buy” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised Essex Property Trust to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $295.00 target price (down from $308.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.94.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.7%

NYSE:ESS opened at $271.31 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $286.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $272.86. Essex Property Trust has a 1-year low of $238.46 and a 1-year high of $303.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.19, a PEG ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 0.69.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $2.62. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 7.33% and a net margin of 21.48%.The company had revenue of $489.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $485.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.03 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.930-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 16.030-16.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust will post 16.18 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $2.59 dividend. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 161.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESS. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the second quarter worth $2,166,555,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,873,698 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $488,601,000 after purchasing an additional 22,835 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 6.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 995,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $240,989,000 after purchasing an additional 57,173 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Essex Property Trust by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 950,748 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $248,792,000 after purchasing an additional 29,466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth $230,690,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, operates, develops and redevelops multifamily residential communities. Its portfolio primarily consists of apartment homes, supported by property management, maintenance and resident services.

The company focuses on high-demand coastal markets on the West Coast, particularly Northern and Southern California and the Seattle metropolitan area in Washington. Essex’s properties are generally located near employment centers, transportation networks and other amenities, serving renters in major urban and suburban communities.

Founded in 1971, Essex Property Trust became a publicly traded real estate investment trust in 1994.