Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Releases Q1 2026 Earnings Guidance

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) issued an update on its first quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 3.890-4.010 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 2.480. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Essex Property Trust also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 15.690-16.190 EPS.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE ESS opened at $251.04 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.17 billion, a PE ratio of 24.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.01 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.18. Essex Property Trust has a 52-week low of $243.25 and a 52-week high of $316.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $256.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $260.71.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.00 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $479.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $474.66 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.58%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.92 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.690-16.190 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.890-4.010 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a $2.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $275.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Barclays reissued a “positive” rating and set a $292.00 target price on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Essex Property Trust from $279.00 to $271.00 and set a “cautious” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $283.87.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESS. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at $6,909,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,499 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $401,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Essex Property Trust during the third quarter valued at approximately $11,136,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.5% during the third quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC now owns 5,108 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,367,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.