Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $255.28.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho raised Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Bank of America raised Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $250.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $237.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. UBS Group increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $250.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Essex Property Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE:ESS opened at $263.41 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $245.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.90. Essex Property Trust has a 52-week low of $203.85 and a 52-week high of $269.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 3.19 and a current ratio of 3.19. The company has a market cap of $16.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.79.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,228 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 2,552 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $633,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,866 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $463,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 591 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

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.