AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Price Target Raised to $251.00

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) had its target price increased by Scotiabank from $241.00 to $251.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on AVB. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $223.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given 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 $239.57.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $201.45 on Monday. AvalonBay Communities has a 52 week low of $180.40 and a 52 week high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. The company has a market capitalization of $28.68 billion, a PE ratio of 26.54, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $206.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $217.09.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.03. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. The firm had revenue of $693.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $744.61 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.70 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVB. Proathlete Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 1,666.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.