Aew Capital Management L P Sells 332,392 Shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. $IRT

Key Points

• Aew Capital Management cut its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 55% in the fourth quarter, selling 332,392 shares and leaving it with 271,575 shares worth about $4.75 million.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with one recent downgrade and several price target adjustments; the stock currently has a consensus Hold rating and a $19.94 average price target.
• Independence Realty Trust beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, reported $0.26 EPS versus $0.03 expected, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.18 per share, implying a 4.3% yield.

Aew Capital Management L P reduced its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT - Free Report) by 55.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 271,575 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 332,392 shares during the quarter. Independence Realty Trust comprises approximately 0.3% of Aew Capital Management L P's holdings, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Aew Capital Management L P owned 0.11% of Independence Realty Trust worth $4,747,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of IRT. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 39,365 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $688,000 after acquiring an additional 712 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,289 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 70.3% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 747 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 70,678 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,250,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 56,400 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $986,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. 88.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Independence Realty Trust from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Independence Realty Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Barclays raised their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Independence Realty Trust currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.94.

Independence Realty Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IRT opened at $16.71 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.53, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.98. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.60 and a 1 year high of $19.14. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.44.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.23. Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 7.27% and a return on equity of 1.35%. The business had revenue of $165.32 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $166.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Independence Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.120-1.160 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.14 EPS for the current year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is a positive change from Independence Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. Independence Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio is 340.00%.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust that acquires, redevelops and manages multi-family communities. The company focuses on workforce housing, targeting Class A and B garden-style apartments in suburban and urban infill locations. Its core activities include sourcing value-add acquisitions, overseeing property renovations and delivering in-house property management services to optimize rental income and occupancy levels.

Headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania, Independence Realty Trust maintains a geographically diverse portfolio across several high-growth U.S.

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