Strategic Global Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 20,050 Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS)

Strategic Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 20,050 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,335,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ELS. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $380,000. Vert Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 79,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,296,000 after buying an additional 7,092 shares in the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties by 185.8% during the 4th quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 24,882 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,657,000 after acquiring an additional 16,176 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 82,239 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,477,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Equity LifeStyle Properties in the fourth quarter worth $917,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.21% of the company’s stock.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE ELS opened at $64.89 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $65.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.99. Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.86 and a 12 month high of $76.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.41 billion, a PE ratio of 33.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.76.

Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.83. Equity LifeStyle Properties had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 23.12%. The company had revenue of $327.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.34 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. Equity LifeStyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 106.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ELS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Equity LifeStyle Properties in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Equity LifeStyle Properties from $69.00 to $68.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Equity LifeStyle Properties from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $66.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.33.

Insider Transactions at Equity LifeStyle Properties

In related news, CFO Paul Seavey sold 10,000 shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.72, for a total transaction of $647,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 78,162 shares in the company, valued at $5,058,644.64. The trade was a 11.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

About Equity LifeStyle Properties

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of lifestyle-oriented properties consisting primarily of manufactured home, and recreational vehicle communities. It operates through the following segments: Property Operations and Home Sales and Rentals Operations.