Signaturefd LLC Sells 169 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Signaturefd LLC reduced its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,811 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 169 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $202,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Equity Residential by 607.8% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EQR shares. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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. Barclays decreased their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.51.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $384,800.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,558,634.42. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Equity Residential Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of EQR opened at $69.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $59.48 and a 1 year high of $78.84.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.6925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. This is a positive change from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.84%.

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.