Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Sell"

Key Points

• Essex Property Trust has been downgraded from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting a negative outlook from analysts.
• Wells Fargo lowered its target price for Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $279.00, with a consensus price target of $297.17 among analysts.
• The company's latest quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share (EPS) of $4.03, surpassing expectations, though revenue slightly missed targets at $465.84 million.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on ESS. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $279.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $279.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $301.50 to $305.50 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $320.00 to $309.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $297.17.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

NYSE:ESS traded up $4.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $267.78. 321,321 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 380,935. The company has a market capitalization of $17.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.53, a P/E/G ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.83. Essex Property Trust has a one year low of $243.85 and a one year high of $316.29. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $266.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $278.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $4.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.99 by $0.04. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 43.51% and a return on equity of 13.98%. The firm had revenue of $465.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $466.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.94 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 3.890-3.990 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 15.800-16.020 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESS. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 300.0% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.

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