Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Releases FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Key Points

• Equity Residential set FY 2026 EPS guidance at 4.020–4.140, versus the consensus estimate of 4.07, and provided Q2 2026 guidance of 0.980–1.020 EPS.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.7025 (annualized $2.81) for a yield of 4.3%, up from $0.69 and carrying a payout ratio of 95.9%.
• Shares jumped about 4.6% to $65.21 on the news; analysts hold a consensus "Hold" rating with an average target of $69.53 amid mixed upgrades and downgrades.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday. The company provided EPS guidance of 4.020-4.140 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 4.070. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Equity Residential also updated its Q2 2026 guidance to 0.980-1.020 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on EQR. Stifel Nicolaus set a $78.50 price target on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Equity Residential from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $63.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Equity Residential from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $74.00 in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $69.53.

Equity Residential Trading Up 4.6%

EQR traded up $2.89 on Tuesday, hitting $65.21. The company had a trading volume of 3,614,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,617,216. The company's fifty day moving average price is $61.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $57.57 and a 1 year high of $72.40. The firm has a market cap of $24.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 4.72 and a beta of 0.73.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $999.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $998.71. Equity Residential had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 9.98%. Equity Residential has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.980-1.020 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 30th were given a $0.7025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 30th. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. This is an increase from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is presently 95.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Robert Garechana sold 3,637 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total transaction of $236,877.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,220,536.20. This represents a 16.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 5,765 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total transaction of $375,474.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 46,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,004,512.03. The trade was a 11.11% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 10,058 shares of company stock worth $655,078 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Equity Residential

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Equity Residential by 3.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,489 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 4,836 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 96.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 11,300 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $763,000 after purchasing an additional 5,537 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the 2nd quarter valued at about $100,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 170.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 20,646 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,393,000 after buying an additional 13,018 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential NYSE: EQR is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company's core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.

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