Westerkirk Capital Inc. Invests $773,000 in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Westerkirk Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 3,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $773,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AVB. Perpetual Ltd grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 10,650 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,167,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.3% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. grew its position in AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% during the second quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC increased its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 62.0% in the 2nd quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 162 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 6,417 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,377,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AVB shares. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Truist Financial cut their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $218.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut AvalonBay Communities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $206.73.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $181.22 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50-day moving average of $183.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.06. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $166.73 and a fifty-two week high of $231.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by ($0.06). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 38.78% and a return on equity of 9.72%. The company had revenue of $766.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $766.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is presently 85.47%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.