UMB Bank n.a. Acquires 114 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,723 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $599,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AVB. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $240,000. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,426 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $476,000. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth $2,419,000. Finally, Procyon Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 16,137 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,550,000 after acquiring an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays started coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho raised AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.53.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AVB stock opened at $219.17 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap of $31.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.98, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.99. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.37 and a 1 year high of $239.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $224.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.93.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. The company had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

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.