Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Key Points

• Equity Residential has been downgraded from a "hold" to a "sell" rating by analysts at Wall Street Zen, indicating a negative outlook on the stock's performance.
• Multiple other research firms maintain varying ratings for Equity Residential, with price targets ranging from $71.00 to $83.00, reflecting differing views on the company's potential.
• Equity Residential's recent financial performance shows a quarterly revenue of $768.83 million, which was slightly below expectations, despite reporting earnings per share that matched consensus estimates.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $80.50 price target on shares of Equity Residential and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $84.00 to $76.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $77.84.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EQR traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $63.02. 341,351 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,918,955. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $59.41 and a 1-year high of $78.83. The firm has a market cap of $24.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.81.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.99. Equity Residential had a net margin of 33.22% and a return on equity of 9.05%. The firm had revenue of $768.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $770.60 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 24th were issued a $0.6925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 24th. This represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is currently 104.53%.

Institutional Trading of Equity Residential

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EQR. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 425.3% in the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 415 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Equity Residential by 51.6% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 461 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in Equity Residential in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new position in Equity Residential in the 1st quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in Equity Residential by 1,000.0% in the 2nd quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 660 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.