Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Acquired by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,202 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. owned about 0.07% of Essex Property Trust worth $12,902,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 37.5% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 486.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 223 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Essex Property Trust

In other Essex Property Trust news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 4,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.99, for a total value of $1,552,585.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 13,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,303,393.38. This trade represents a 26.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 7,298 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $2,298,870.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,077,170. This represents a 31.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,345 shares of company stock worth $6,682,539. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:ESS opened at $305.21 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.63 billion, a PE ratio of 26.45, a PEG ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 0.90. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.90 and a 1 year high of $317.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $292.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $294.58.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $2.57 dividend. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $292.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $308.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.16.

Essex Property Trust 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.