Entropy Technologies LP Buys New Stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,407 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 1,934 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $280,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,094 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE AVB opened at $220.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.99, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.99. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $172.16 and a 12 month high of $239.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $219.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $222.44.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.53 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AVB shares. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $243.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.73.

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.