Avanza Fonder AB Invests $2 Million in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Avanza Fonder AB bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 27,828 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,997,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Equity Residential in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Equity Residential by 2,529.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Equity Residential during the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 69.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Trading Down 0.7 %

EQR opened at $69.78 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.48 billion, a PE ratio of 28.60, a P/E/G ratio of 5.25 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a one year low of $57.33 and a one year high of $78.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $72.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.55.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 110.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on EQR. StockNews.com raised shares of Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Equity Residential from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $77.75 to $81.50 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $83.00 price objective on the stock. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.69.

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.