Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $69.7778.

EQR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $73.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $63.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th.

Equity Residential Trading Up 0.2%

Equity Residential stock opened at $63.61 on Thursday. Equity Residential has a 52 week low of $58.38 and a 52 week high of $75.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $62.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.58.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.01). Equity Residential had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The business had revenue of $781.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $786.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. Equity Residential’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equity Residential has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.940-0.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current year.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were paid a $0.6925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 94.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Robert Garechana sold 3,637 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total transaction of $236,877.81. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,220,536.20. This trade represents a 16.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 5,765 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $375,474.45. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 46,131 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,004,512.03. This represents a 11.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 10,058 shares of company stock valued at $655,078 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Equity Residential

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the 4th quarter valued at $2,201,674,000. Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 227.7% during the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 7,405,502 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $466,869,000 after acquiring an additional 5,145,442 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 876.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,500,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $291,342,000 after acquiring an additional 4,039,752 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 797.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,085,406 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $134,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,852,970 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 725.6% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 1,908,429 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $128,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,677,278 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.