Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Upgraded at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has $310.00 price objective on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $308.00.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $316.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James lowered shares of Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $305.53.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:ESS opened at $277.52 on Tuesday. Essex Property Trust has a 12 month low of $223.06 and a 12 month high of $317.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $291.91 and its 200 day moving average is $292.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.84 billion, a PE ratio of 32.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.46 and a beta of 0.92.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.88 by ($2.04). The firm had revenue of $450.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $445.88 million. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.78 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Essex Property Trust will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 114.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter worth about $442,000. Vert Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 28,367 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,097,000 after acquiring an additional 2,366 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,359 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,530,000 after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Essex Property Trust by 201.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 225,768 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $64,443,000 after acquiring an additional 150,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,191 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.