Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $245.37.

ESS has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $225.00 to $223.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $291.00 target price on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 116.2% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 23,089 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after buying an additional 12,409 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 8.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 956 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the third quarter worth about $1,156,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at about $516,000. Finally, Vanderbilt University raised its position in Essex Property Trust by 61.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanderbilt University now owns 1,995 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 757 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 0.2 %

ESS opened at $247.21 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $238.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $231.60. Essex Property Trust has a twelve month low of $203.85 and a twelve month high of $252.85. The stock has a market cap of $15.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.18, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 3.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a $2.45 dividend. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 155.31%.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.