Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have given a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $302.11.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James lowered shares of Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $316.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $333.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America lowered Essex Property Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $307.00 to $321.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 target price for the company.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

NYSE:ESS opened at $284.43 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.23, a PEG ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $297.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $291.64. Essex Property Trust has a 1 year low of $223.06 and a 1 year high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.88 by ($2.04). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. The company had revenue of $450.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $445.88 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust will post 15.56 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 600.0% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 121.8% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 193 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 104.5% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 225 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Essex Property Trust

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.