Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) Short Interest Update

Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 23,820,000 shares, a growth of 90.3% from the August 31st total of 12,520,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 11.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Independence Realty Trust currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.57.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

Independence Realty Trust stock traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $20.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,467,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,281,890. The company has a 50 day moving average of $19.96 and a 200-day moving average of $17.98. Independence Realty Trust has a one year low of $11.61 and a one year high of $21.20. The stock has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of -683.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.17.

Independence Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Independence Realty Trust’s payout ratio is -2,133.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Independence Realty Trust

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Independence Realty Trust in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Independence Realty Trust in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Independence Realty Trust in the first quarter worth $40,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 146.6% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,833 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at $64,000. 88.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.