AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Cut to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on AVB. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $223.00 to $220.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $227.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho lowered their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $213.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $220.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $237.86.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:AVB traded down $1.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $202.31. The stock had a trading volume of 112,364 shares, compared to its average volume of 773,104. The firm has a market cap of $28.80 billion, a PE ratio of 26.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $203.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities has a twelve month low of $180.40 and a twelve month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.03. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. The business had revenue of $693.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $744.61 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.70 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 87.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AVB. Proathlete Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,666.7% during the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company's stock.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.