Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Stock Holdings Lifted by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 133,886 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 1,569 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned 0.21% of Essex Property Trust worth $41,045,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 9.5% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,844 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,098,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 52.9% during the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 36.0% during the first quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 2,832 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $868,000 after purchasing an additional 749 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the first quarter valued at $569,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the first quarter valued at $705,000. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on ESS shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $315.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $355.00 target price (down previously from $370.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $310.28.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of ESS traded up $6.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $287.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 603,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,950. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $281.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $286.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.56, a PEG ratio of 5.97 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.85 and a fifty-two week high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.92 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $464.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $458.03 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 37.08% and a return on equity of 11.81%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $2.57 dividend. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.37%.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.