American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE:AMH) Announces Dividend Increase – $0.33 Per Share

American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE:AMH) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of 0.33 per share by the real estate investment trust on Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a 10.0% increase from American Homes 4 Rent’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

American Homes 4 Rent has raised its dividend by an average of 0.4%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 5 years. American Homes 4 Rent has a dividend payout ratio of 153.8% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect American Homes 4 Rent to earn $1.98 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 60.6%.

American Homes 4 Rent Stock Performance

American Homes 4 Rent stock traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $31.60. 4,466,874 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,486,375. The firm has a market cap of $11.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.78, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $31.45 and a 200 day moving average of $32.72. American Homes 4 Rent has a 12 month low of $28.84 and a 12 month high of $39.49.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Homes 4 Rent

In related news, Director Douglas N. Benham purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $31.65 per share, for a total transaction of $31,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $252,915.15. The trade was a 14.30% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jack E. Corrigan acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were bought at an average price of $22.96 per share, with a total value of $114,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 17,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,208. This represents a 40.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 6.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in American Homes 4 Rent by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,715,728 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,486,798,000 after acquiring an additional 246,713 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of American Homes 4 Rent during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $710,672,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of American Homes 4 Rent by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,424,196 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $612,605,000 after purchasing an additional 399,894 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Homes 4 Rent by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,810,964 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $507,532,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in American Homes 4 Rent by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,355,760 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $235,572,000 after purchasing an additional 161,676 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.87% of the company’s stock.

About American Homes 4 Rent

American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in the acquisition, development and management of single-family rental homes. Since its initial public offering in April 2013, the company has focused on building a large-scale, professionally managed portfolio of homes designed to meet the needs of today’s renters. Its business model emphasizes the acquisition of well-located properties coupled with consistent, in-house property management to drive occupancy and long-term value.

As of the most recent reporting, American Homes 4 Rent owns and operates tens of thousands of homes across the United States, with concentration in key Sun Belt and high-growth markets.