AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Acquired by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 2.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 251,593 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,275 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.18% of AvalonBay Communities worth $53,997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CX Institutional purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the first quarter valued at $196,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,279,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 3,071.6% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,199 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,194,000 after acquiring an additional 23,436 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 17,829 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,826,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 14.2% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,148 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of AVB stock opened at $206.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $203.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.85. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $180.40 and a one year 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.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $693.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $744.61 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on AVB shares. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $213.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut AvalonBay Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $237.86.

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.