Deutsche Bank AG Buys 1,421,377 Shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT - Free Report) by 72.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,381,684 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 1,421,377 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG owned 1.50% of Independence Realty Trust worth $67,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in Independence Realty Trust by 66.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 627.5% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,328 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 67.1% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,491 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Independence Realty Trust by 33.9% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,735 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Independence Realty Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $70,000. 88.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Scott Schaeffer sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.21, for a total value of $212,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 873,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,524,071.65. This trade represents a 1.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $232,245 over the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IRT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Compass Point reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research report on Monday, April 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Independence Realty Trust from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Independence Realty Trust presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.70.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

Shares of IRT stock traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $19.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,527,559 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,094,841. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 108.78, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.98. The firm's fifty day moving average is $19.70 and its 200 day moving average is $20.10. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $15.66 and a 12 month high of $22.26.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.01). Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 1.11%. The business had revenue of $160.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This is a positive change from Independence Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Independence Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio is 457.14%.

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.