Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS Shares Acquired by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 74.2% in the first quarter, adding 8,350 shares to reach 19,608 shares valued at about $4.75 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on ESS is mixed but generally cautious: analysts currently have a “Hold” consensus rating, with an average price target of $292.08.
• The company reported Q1 earnings of $1.65 per share, well below estimates, but it also declared a quarterly dividend of $2.59 per share payable July 15, implying a 3.5% yield.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 74.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,608 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 8,350 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $4,745,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ESS. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in Essex Property Trust by 442.7% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 27,902 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $7,468,000 after buying an additional 22,761 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 524,756 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $140,443,000 after buying an additional 15,301 shares during the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 393.1% during the 3rd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 69,629 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $18,637,000 after purchasing an additional 55,508 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 78.6% during the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 28,730 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $7,690,000 after acquiring an additional 12,648 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 255,533 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $66,868,000 after purchasing an additional 6,422 shares during the period. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group set a $290.00 price objective on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $292.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $669,003.30. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of ESS stock opened at $298.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.49, a P/E/G ratio of 12.86 and a beta of 0.70. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $238.46 and a 12-month high of $300.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $276.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $261.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($2.31). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.03% and a return on equity of 10.00%. The business had revenue of $484.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $479.89 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.97 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $2.59 per share. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Essex Property Trust's payout ratio is currently 116.40%.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc NYSE: ESS is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.

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