AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB Shares Bought by Barclays PLC

Key Points

• Barclays PLC increased its stake in AvalonBay by 41.9% in Q3 to 364,194 shares (about $70.35 million), representing roughly 0.26% ownership of the REIT.
• AvalonBay raised its quarterly dividend to $1.78 (annualized $7.12) for a 4.0% yield, with an ex-dividend date of March 31 and a payout ratio of 86.94%.
• The company slightly beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.85 and revenue of $767.9 million, while analysts' consensus is a "Hold" rating and an average price target of $199.66 (market cap ≈ $24.9 billion).

Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 41.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 364,194 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 107,622 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.26% of AvalonBay Communities worth $70,351,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Clearstead Trust LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 62.0% in the second quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 162 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $59,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.8%

AVB stock opened at $177.94 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $178.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.75. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a one year low of $166.73 and a one year high of $222.38.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.01. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 34.57%.The business had revenue of $767.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $766.38 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $1.78 dividend. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio is 86.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $222.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AvalonBay Communities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $172.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $193.00 to $190.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup dropped their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $198.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $199.66.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc NYSE: AVB is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay's core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay's operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.

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