7,624 Shares in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Acquired by GAM Holding AG

GAM Holding AG bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 7,624 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $2,337,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,195 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 9,824 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,804,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 315.3% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,304 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 990 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $3,086,000. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ESS. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $293.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Raymond James Financial raised Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $292.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $355.00 price target (down previously from $370.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $310.28.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:ESS traded up $0.55 on Tuesday, reaching $286.35. The stock had a trading volume of 486,229 shares, compared to its average volume of 417,177. The company has a 50-day moving average of $281.09 and a 200 day moving average of $286.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market cap of $18.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.78. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.85 and a 12-month high of $317.73.

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

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $2.57 per share. This represents a $10.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio 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.