Sun Life Financial Inc. Has $31.12 Million Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Sun Life Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 161,087 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,660 shares during the period. AvalonBay Communities accounts for 1.6% of Sun Life Financial Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. Sun Life Financial Inc.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $31,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 0.6% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,800,375 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,639,876,000 after acquiring an additional 127,693 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,445,499 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,938,326,000 after purchasing an additional 182,952 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,394,225,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,215,821 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $814,376,000 after purchasing an additional 249,171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,875,614 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $785,551,000 after purchasing an additional 57,599 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AVB opened at $177.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $178.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.56. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $166.73 and a one year high of $230.21.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $767.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $766.38 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 34.57%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $1.78 dividend. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. This represents a $7.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AVB. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $179.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $222.50 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $199.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $200.91.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.