Groupama Asset Managment Cuts Stock Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Key Points

• Groupama Asset Managment cut its stake in AvalonBay by 70.4% in Q3, selling 9,087 shares and leaving it with 3,812 shares valued at about $736,000.
• AvalonBay raised its quarterly dividend to $1.78 (from $1.75), a $7.12 annualized payout with a 4.4% yield; the ex-dividend and record date are March 31 and the dividend is payable April 15.
• Shares opened at $161.33 and were trading down 2.4%; the company reported Q earnings of $2.85 per share (beating by $0.01) and carries a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold with a $198.75 target.

Groupama Asset Managment lowered its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,812 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 9,087 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment's holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $736,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 21.0% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 44,760 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $8,646,000 after purchasing an additional 7,780 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 3.1% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 216,153 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $41,754,000 after buying an additional 6,511 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 78.7% during the second quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 15,702 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,195,000 after buying an additional 6,916 shares during the last quarter. Sun Life Financial Inc. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sun Life Financial Inc. now owns 161,087 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $31,117,000 after buying an additional 8,660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 17.7% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 449,348 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $90,768,000 after buying an additional 67,695 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 2.4%

AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $161.33 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $175.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.23. The company has a market cap of $22.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.75. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.72 and a 52-week high of $217.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $767.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $766.38 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 34.57% and a return on equity of 8.78%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. Analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $1.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.75. This represents a $7.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. AvalonBay Communities's payout ratio is 86.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AVB shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $222.50 to $208.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $217.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $172.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $198.75.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc NYSE: AVB is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay's core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay's operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.

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