Achmea Investment Management B.V. Decreases Position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Key Points

• Achmea Investment Management cut its stake in Essex Property Trust by 36.4%, selling 10,264 shares and leaving it with 17,961 shares worth $4.81 million at the end of the quarter.
• Essex slightly missed quarterly EPS expectations ($3.98 vs. $4.00) but issued FY2026 guidance of 15.690–16.190 EPS and Q1 guidance of 3.890–4.010 EPS.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $2.59 (annualized $10.36) for a ~4.2% yield, although the payout ratio is high at 98.75%.

Achmea Investment Management B.V. trimmed its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 36.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,961 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 10,264 shares during the period. Achmea Investment Management B.V.'s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $4,807,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ESS. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 57.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the second quarter valued at $48,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 2nd quarter worth about $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on ESS shares. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and cut their price target for the company from $305.00 to $280.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $267.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $282.00 target price (down from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Mizuho increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $275.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $278.00 price target on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $282.00.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of ESS opened at $246.53 on Thursday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.25 and a 1-year high of $310.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $253.90 and a 200 day moving average of $258.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.68, a PEG ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.00 by ($0.02). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The company had revenue of $479.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $474.66 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.92 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.690-16.190 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.890-4.010 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $2.59 per share. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 98.75%.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc NYSE: ESS is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.

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