Metis Global Partners LLC Purchases 4,657 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Metis Global Partners LLC grew its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,824 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,657 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $4,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in Equity Residential by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co increased its position in Equity Residential by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 31,433 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,256,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust boosted its position in Equity Residential by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,696 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on EQR. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho lowered 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. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reduced their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.46.

Equity Residential Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE EQR opened at $74.06 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $28.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a fifty-two week low of $59.19 and a fifty-two week high of $78.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.65%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 99.26%.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In related news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

About Equity Residential

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.