Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd Acquires Shares of 12,251 Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 12,251 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $879,000. Equity Residential comprises approximately 0.8% of Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Keybank National Association OH grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $502,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,827 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 765 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,604 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EQR traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,122,806 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,734,451. 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 fifty-two week low of $59.41 and a fifty-two week high of $78.84. The business's 50 day moving average price is $68.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.70. The company has a market cap of $26.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.89.

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

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.6925 dividend. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. This is an increase from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential's payout ratio is presently 105.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Equity Residential from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Equity Residential from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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.