Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

ESS has been the subject of several other research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $300.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $280.00 to $268.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $282.00 price target (down previously from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $294.00 to $284.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.59.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.8%

ESS stock opened at $256.95 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $258.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $265.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.53, a PEG ratio of 6.12 and a beta of 0.73. Essex Property Trust has a one year low of $243.25 and a one year high of $316.29.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $473.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $472.11 million. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 45.46%.During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.91 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 3.930-4.030 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 15.890-15.990 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a $2.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barings LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 2nd quarter worth about $829,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 12,050.0% during the second quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 243 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 220.4% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,319 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $941,000 after buying an additional 2,283 shares during the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY boosted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 19.9% during the second quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 9,636 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,731,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 138,574 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,272,000 after buying an additional 1,914 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.