Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESSGet Free Report) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $293.40.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $333.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $261.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ESS opened at $294.35 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $18.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.98, a P/E/G ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.88. Essex Property Trust has a twelve month low of $203.85 and a twelve month high of $317.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $296.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $275.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESSGet Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.85 by ($2.40). The business had revenue of $442.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $433.26 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 9.14%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.77 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust will post 15.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $2.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is 119.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essex Property Trust

In other news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total transaction of $2,308,430.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $817,661.35. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Anne Morrison sold 2,571 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.79, for a total value of $809,325.09. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,321 shares in the company, valued at $730,627.59. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total value of $2,308,430.38. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $817,661.35. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 20,402 shares of company stock valued at $6,399,663. Insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 214.3% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 600.0% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 121.8% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

About Essex Property Trust

(Get Free Report

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS)

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