Analysts Set Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) PT at $282.00

Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $282.00.

Several research firms recently weighed in on ESS. Wall Street Zen raised Essex Property Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $278.00 price objective on Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $267.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Friday, February 27th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Essex Property Trust by 3.8% during the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,054 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 814 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $213,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 6,957 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,862,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Segment Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock opened at $247.74 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $251.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $255.33. Essex Property Trust has a 1 year low of $238.46 and a 1 year high of $294.09. The company has a market capitalization of $15.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.80, a P/E/G ratio of 7.89 and a beta of 0.71.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.00 by ($0.02). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The company had revenue of $479.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $474.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.92 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.690-16.190 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.890-4.010 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $2.59 per share. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.52%.

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.