Intech Investment Management LLC Invests $490,000 in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,229 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $490,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 678.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,715,050 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $386,315,000 after buying an additional 1,494,872 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,245,028 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,097,971,000 after acquiring an additional 196,938 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 51.7% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 554,290 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $121,927,000 after buying an additional 188,906 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $35,153,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $23,513,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $214.40 on Tuesday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.40 and a twelve month 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. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $217.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.78. The company has a market capitalization of $30.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its 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%. As a group, analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 92.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Zelman & Associates raised AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Mizuho raised AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays cut their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

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.