Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Analysts

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have assigned a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $137.59.

MAA has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $155.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $146.00 to $136.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $152.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 8th.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:MAA opened at $118.84 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.78 billion, a PE ratio of 36.01 and a beta of 0.71. Mid-America Apartment Communities has a 52-week low of $113.95 and a 52-week high of $144.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $119.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($1.38). The firm had revenue of $560.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $558.07 million. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a net margin of 17.43% and a return on equity of 6.89%. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities will post 8.50 EPS for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th were issued a $1.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $6.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s payout ratio is presently 185.45%.

Insider Activity at Mid-America Apartment Communities

In other news, EVP Adrian Hill acquired 844 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $118.35 per share, for a total transaction of $99,887.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 65,277 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,725,532.95. This represents a 1.31% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the second quarter valued at about $1,820,661,000. Aberdeen Group plc boosted its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 340.9% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,740,919 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $204,976,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,062 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $175,377,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 15,892.5% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,221,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $169,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213,390 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $155,052,000. 93.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Company Profile

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (MAA) is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates, acquires and develops apartment communities. Its properties offer rental housing and related resident services and amenities. The company focuses primarily on markets across the southeastern and southwestern United States, as well as select Mid-Atlantic locations. Its portfolio includes communities in urban and suburban areas. Headquartered in Germantown, Tennessee, MAA has been led by President and Chief Executive Officer H. Eric Bolton Jr. since 2001.