AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Price Target Raised to $230.00

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) had its price objective hoisted by Piper Sandler from $207.00 to $230.00 in a report issued on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a buy rating and a $206.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded AvalonBay Communities from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and raised their price objective for the company from $175.00 to $191.50 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. KeyCorp restated a sector weight rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Wolfe Research lowered AvalonBay Communities from an outperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $191.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $199.78.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

NYSE:AVB opened at $191.02 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $27.16 billion, a PE ratio of 28.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $182.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $178.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities has a 52 week low of $160.45 and a 52 week high of $198.65.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($1.42). The firm had revenue of $712.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $706.61 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 34.05% and a return on equity of 8.12%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 10.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total transaction of $323,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Byrne Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 270.0% in the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 185 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 50.0% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 225 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,542.9% during the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 230 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 53.7% during the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 312 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.