Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $69.24 and last traded at $69.0750, with a volume of 375237 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $67.93.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on EQR shares. Bank of America upgraded Equity Residential from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $76.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Equity Residential to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut shares of Equity Residential from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.65.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.6%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $25.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.61, a P/E/G ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $65.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.09.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $779.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $781.79 million. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 30.63%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. Equity Residential has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.980-1.020 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th will be given a dividend of $0.7025 per share. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is currently 112.40%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its position in Equity Residential by 69.2% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 440 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 375.2% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 480 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.