Adelante Capital Management LLC Raises Position in Equity Residential $EQR

Key Points

• Adelante Capital Management increased its Equity Residential position by 4.5% in the first quarter, adding 38,734 shares to own 894,206 shares valued at approximately $52.9 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 92.68% of EQR.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but improved recently: Bank of America and Nordea upgraded the stock to “buy,” while the broader analyst consensus is still “Hold” with an average price target of $71.40.
• Equity Residential shares opened at $68.15, while the company reported first-quarter EPS of $0.24, below the $0.33 estimate. It maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.7025 per share, equivalent to a 4.1% yield, though its payout ratio is elevated at 122.17%.

Adelante Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 4.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 894,206 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 38,734 shares during the period. Equity Residential makes up about 3.5% of Adelante Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Adelante Capital Management LLC owned about 0.24% of Equity Residential worth $52,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Equity Residential by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,543 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 61,177 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,619,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 48.8% in the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 549 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 4,990 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Equity Residential by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,165 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $571,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on EQR. Bank of America raised shares of Equity Residential from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $76.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Nordea Equity Research upgraded Equity Residential to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $76.00 price objective on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Equity Residential from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $71.40.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $68.15 on Wednesday. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $57.57 and a 1 year high of $71.50. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.55 billion, a PE ratio of 29.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.35 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.19 and a quick ratio of 0.18.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $779.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $781.79 million. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 27.97%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Equity Residential will post 4.08 EPS for the current year.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 29th were paid a dividend of $0.7025 per share. This represents a $2.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 29th. Equity Residential's payout ratio is currently 122.17%.

About Equity Residential

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EQR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.