Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Sells 107 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd trimmed its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,114 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 107 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $2,444,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

AVB opened at $226.17 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $218.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $223.35. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $174.46 and a 1 year high of $239.29. The stock has a market cap of $32.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. Equities research analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 92.23%.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.