Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Stock Position in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) by 26.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 141,169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 29,128 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Independence Realty Trust were worth $2,801,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in IRT. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 236.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,027,943 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $82,573,000 after purchasing an additional 2,829,247 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,360,979 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $232,900,000 after acquiring an additional 2,225,371 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 419.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,433,058 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,378,000 after acquiring an additional 1,157,052 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 38.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,495,118 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,150,000 after acquiring an additional 686,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Independence Realty Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $12,105,000. 88.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:IRT opened at $20.74 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 115.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.18. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.25 and a 1-year high of $22.26. The company’s fifty day moving average is $20.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.29.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.24. Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 1.11%. Sell-side analysts expect that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independence Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Independence Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 355.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on IRT shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $22.00 price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.00.

Independence Realty Trust Profile

Independence Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.