Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 15,194 Shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 45.3%, now owning 18,310 shares valued at $389,000.
• Independence Realty Trust recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share, up from $0.16, representing a yield of 4.1%.
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Independence Realty Trust, with price targets ranging from $21.00 to $25.00.

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT - Free Report) by 45.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,310 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 15,194 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Independence Realty Trust were worth $389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of IRT. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,380,250 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $86,904,000 after purchasing an additional 352,307 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,551,247 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $70,457,000 after acquiring an additional 793,403 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 72.5% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,381,684 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $67,093,000 after acquiring an additional 1,421,377 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,506,902 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $49,737,000 after acquiring an additional 11,784 shares during the period. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 592.0% in the fourth quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,711,746 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $33,961,000 after acquiring an additional 1,464,400 shares during the period. 88.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Independence Realty Trust Trading Down 1.2%

Independence Realty Trust stock traded down $0.21 on Wednesday, hitting $17.04. 1,806,294 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,170,713. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $17.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.06. The firm has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 141.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.94. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.59 and a 1 year high of $22.26.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.28. The firm had revenue of $161.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.78 million. Independence Realty Trust had a return on equity of 0.78% and a net margin of 4.31%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th were given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from Independence Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Independence Realty Trust's payout ratio is presently 566.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on IRT shares. Barclays raised their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Compass Point raised Independence Realty Trust from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Independence Realty Trust currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.60.

Independence Realty Trust Profile

Independence Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: IRT is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.