Capital Fund Management S.A. Invests $5.59 Million in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Capital Fund Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 77,833 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $5,585,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,493,426,000. APG Asset Management US Inc. increased its holdings in Equity Residential by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management US Inc. now owns 11,664,576 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $837,050,000 after acquiring an additional 57,660 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,519,627 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $681,594,000 after acquiring an additional 165,683 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,897,863 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $566,749,000 after purchasing an additional 152,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Equity Residential by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,522,442 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $468,050,000 after purchasing an additional 696,343 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho cut their price target on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $78.51.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In related news, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,558,634.42. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR traded up $1.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $68.16. 2,743,773 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,723,099. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $59.41 and a 12-month high of $78.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.06, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $69.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.47.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.6925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.06%. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is 101.84%.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.