Insider Selling: Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) EVP Sells 5,340 Shares of Stock

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 35,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,558,634.42. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Equity Residential Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of EQR stock opened at $71.36 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $70.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.72. Equity Residential has a twelve month low of $57.33 and a twelve month high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $77.75 to $81.50 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.36.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 806.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,259,145 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $317,136,000 after buying an additional 3,789,234 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 1,459.8% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,949,473 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $145,158,000 after acquiring an additional 1,824,494 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 29.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,746,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $576,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,741,840 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Equity Residential by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,745,615 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $576,737,000 after acquiring an additional 591,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 2,193.2% in the third quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 416,647 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,024,000 after purchasing an additional 398,478 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.