Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Shares Sold by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its stake in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 624,415 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 9,272 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned about 0.16% of Equity Residential worth $44,808,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Equity Residential by 607.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 109.5% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 551 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in Equity Residential in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 765 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity Residential Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Equity Residential stock traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $68.64. 2,025,616 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,732,429. The company has a market cap of $26.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $59.41 and a 12 month high of $78.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $68.86 and a 200-day moving average of $70.75.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $760.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $769.43 million. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.27% and a net margin of 34.76%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.6925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. This is a positive change from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio is presently 105.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on EQR. Wall Street Zen upgraded Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $82.25 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.50.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.