Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Shares Purchased by Forsta AP Fonden

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden has increased its stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 3.4%, acquiring an additional 4,600 shares to total 139,000 shares, valued at $9.95 million.
• A number of analysts have adjusted their price targets for Equity Residential, with Royal Bank of Canada raising it to $76.00 while Mizuho lowered it to $71.00, reflecting varied outlooks among investment analysts.
• Equity Residential reported earnings of $0.99 EPS for the quarter, matching analysts' expectations, while the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6925 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.4%.

Forsta AP Fonden lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 3.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 139,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Equity Residential were worth $9,950,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 51.6% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 461 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 27.6% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 740 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of EQR traded up $1.30 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $64.00. 1,710,424 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,928,190. The firm has a market cap of $24.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.81. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $59.41 and a 12-month high of $78.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 33.22%. The firm had revenue of $768.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $770.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. Equity Residential's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 24th were paid a dividend of $0.6925 per share. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 24th. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $81.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group reduced their target price on Equity Residential from $84.00 to $76.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Equity Residential from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $77.84.

Equity Residential Profile

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.