AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. cut its stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 24.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 6,325 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $4,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 29.6% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 1,260 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,060,497 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $914,627,000 after buying an additional 55,588 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 604,010 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $132,751,000 after purchasing an additional 8,439 shares during the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 27.0% in the 4th quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 22,356 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,918,000 after purchasing an additional 4,747 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 344,139 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $75,701,000 after purchasing an additional 42,416 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE AVB traded down $1.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $198.13. 882,094 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 709,784. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.10, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $180.40 and a 52-week high of $239.29. The company's 50-day moving average is $205.10 and its 200-day moving average is $216.15.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.03. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. The firm had revenue of $693.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $744.61 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.70 EPS. Analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is 87.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $220.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Truist Financial upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Mizuho dropped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $213.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Scotiabank upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $241.00 to $251.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $237.86.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

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.