AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Acquired by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 215,404 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 18,282 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.15% of AvalonBay Communities worth $46,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proathlete Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,666.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of AVB traded down $0.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $201.81. The company had a trading volume of 513,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 745,632. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $204.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $210.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market capitalization of $28.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.13, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.85. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $693.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $744.61 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 38.86% and a return on equity of 9.65%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.70 EPS. Research analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 87.17%.

Insider Activity

In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Edward M. Schulman sold 5,945 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.67, for a total transaction of $1,222,708.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,623,288.39. This trade represents a 25.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Kevin P. O'shea sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.57, for a total transaction of $1,245,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 22,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,728,859.74. This trade represents a 20.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.45% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on AVB. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $236.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $249.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, June 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $227.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $235.86.

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.