Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Given New $304.00 Price Target at Barclays

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its price objective raised by Barclays from $302.00 to $304.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $302.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $297.00 to $303.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $308.00 to $310.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $306.63.

Essex Property Trust Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of ESS stock opened at $291.31 on Wednesday. Essex Property Trust has a 12-month low of $225.40 and a 12-month high of $317.73. The company has a market capitalization of $18.72 billion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.70 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $285.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $292.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 13.05% and a net margin of 41.79%. As a group, analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 2,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.