Perpetual Ltd Purchases 1,750 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Perpetual Ltd grew its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 18.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 11,020 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,750 shares during the quarter. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $2,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AVB. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AVB shares. Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.53.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $219.17 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50 day moving average is $224.19 and its 200 day moving average is $220.93. The stock has a market cap of $31.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.99. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.37 and a 52-week high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

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.