AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV cut its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 852 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $3,991,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AVB shares. Morgan Stanley cut AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $218.78 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.82, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $218.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $222.96. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $172.85 and a 52 week high of $239.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. Equities research analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.59%.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.