GAMMA Investing LLC Purchases 547,894 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 21,024.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 550,500 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 547,894 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC owned about 0.39% of AvalonBay Communities worth $118,148,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,060,497 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $914,627,000 after acquiring an additional 55,588 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,761.6% in the fourth quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,601 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $352,000 after acquiring an additional 1,515 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,028 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $666,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 128,325 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $28,228,000 after acquiring an additional 2,407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 6,300 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,386,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of AVB traded down $0.76 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $203.85. The stock had a trading volume of 70,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 714,832. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $203.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.70. The company has a market capitalization of $29.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $180.40 and a 12 month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.03. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. The business had revenue of $693.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $744.61 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio is presently 87.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AVB shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded AvalonBay Communities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $223.00 to $220.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $237.86.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.