Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target Cut to $279.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo lowered Essex Property Trust’s price target to $279 from $297 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying 3.81% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $298.99; targets from other firms range as high as $330.
• ESS shares fell 0.2% to $268.76, while institutional investors and hedge funds own a substantial 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $297.00 to $279.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 3.81% from the company's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on ESS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 target price on Essex Property Trust in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Citizens Jmp upgraded Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $330.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore set a $299.00 price target on Essex Property Trust in a report on Monday, September 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $291.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $298.99.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 0.2%

ESS stock traded down $0.67 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $268.76. The stock had a trading volume of 91,955 shares, compared to its average volume of 503,700. The company's 50-day moving average price is $277.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $276.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $17.27 billion, a PE ratio of 41.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.00 and a beta of 0.70. Essex Property Trust has a 12-month low of $238.46 and a 12-month high of $303.35.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $2.62. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 7.33% and a net margin of 21.48%. The company had revenue of $489.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $485.12 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.03 EPS. Essex Property Trust has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.930-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 16.030-16.250 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 16.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,166,555,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 995,810 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $240,989,000 after buying an additional 57,173 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the second quarter worth about $260,252,000. Rush Island Management LP raised its stake in Essex Property Trust by 26.8% during the first quarter. Rush Island Management LP now owns 807,893 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $195,510,000 after acquiring an additional 170,682 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Essex Property Trust by 23,177.2% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 757,439 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $220,862,000 after acquiring an additional 754,185 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily apartment communities. The company focuses on providing rental housing in high-demand markets and generates revenue primarily from apartment rents and related resident services.

Founded in 1971 and headquartered in San Mateo, California, Essex operates primarily in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, and the Seattle metropolitan area.

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