Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 83,023 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 12.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 607,899 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 83,023 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.43% of AvalonBay Communities worth $130,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proathlete Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the first quarter worth $33,000. Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 1,666.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the first quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth $53,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of AVB stock opened at $185.13 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $200.81 and a 200-day moving average of $207.08. The company has a market cap of $26.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $180.40 and a one year high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $689.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $759.08 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 38.91% and a return on equity of 9.70%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.77 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AVB. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $216.00 to $211.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $236.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Monday, August 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.79.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.57, for a total transaction of $1,245,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 22,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,728,859.74. This represents a 20.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Edward M. Schulman sold 5,945 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.67, for a total transaction of $1,222,708.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,623,288.39. The trade was a 25.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.