Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 5.06% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $290.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $261.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $269.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Essex Property Trust from $267.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $281.25.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.3 %

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $302.69 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.00, a PEG ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.86. Essex Property Trust has a fifty-two week low of $203.85 and a fifty-two week high of $304.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $283.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $261.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 1.62.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.85 by ($2.40). The company had revenue of $442.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $433.26 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 9.14%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.77 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust will post 15.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,641,895.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,425,519.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in Essex Property Trust by 214.3% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 600.0% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 121.8% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.