Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $79.25.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 13th.

Equity Residential Price Performance

EQR opened at $67.15 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $25.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.63, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $69.26 and a 200 day moving average of $69.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20. Equity Residential has a fifty-two week low of $59.41 and a fifty-two week high of $78.84.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $760.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $769.43 million. Equity Residential had a net margin of 33.11% and a return on equity of 8.93%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.93 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current year.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be issued a $0.6925 dividend. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 24th. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 105.73%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equity Residential

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Equity Residential by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 483,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,714,000 after purchasing an additional 263,622 shares in the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP purchased a new stake in Equity Residential in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $321,000. Keybank National Association OH raised its stake in Equity Residential by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Equity Residential by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,210,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $302,137,000 after purchasing an additional 136,275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Starwood Capital Group Management L.L.C. raised its stake in Equity Residential by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Starwood Capital Group Management L.L.C. now owns 339,338 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,351,000 after purchasing an additional 70,500 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.