Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Shares Sold by Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC

Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 13,131 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 338 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $942,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,922,127 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,796,976,000 after acquiring an additional 321,002 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,353,944 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $694,441,000 after acquiring an additional 132,638 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,897,863 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $566,749,000 after acquiring an additional 152,248 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,746,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $576,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,741,840 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 806.4% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 3,789,234 shares during the period. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Residential Price Performance

NYSE:EQR opened at $73.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.00 billion, a PE ratio of 27.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a 52 week low of $59.48 and a 52 week high of $78.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $70.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.26%.

Insider Activity at Equity Residential

In related news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares in the company, valued at $2,558,634.42. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on EQR shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.46.

About Equity Residential

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.