Legal & General Group Plc Boosts Stock Holdings in Equity Residential $EQR

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Equity Residential by 5.7%, adding 273,673 shares to hold 5,045,443 shares (about 1.33% of the company) valued at roughly $326.6 million.
• Institutional investors own 92.68% of EQR, and analysts rate the stock an average "Hold" with an average target price of $69.68.
• Equity Residential slightly missed quarterly estimates (EPS $1.03 vs. $1.04; revenue $781.9M vs. $786.4M), issued FY2026 EPS guidance of 4.02–4.14, and insiders have been net sellers (10,058 shares sold in the last 90 days).

Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 5.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,045,443 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 273,673 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 1.33% of Equity Residential worth $326,592,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 434.7% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 540 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 203.5% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 780 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 523 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the second quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Piper Sandler set a $78.00 price target on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Equity Residential from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $63.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $69.68.

Equity Residential Stock Down 2.2%

EQR stock opened at $60.13 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $62.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.48. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $58.38 and a 12 month high of $72.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.70 billion, a PE ratio of 20.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.63 and a beta of 0.75.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.01). Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.98% and a net margin of 36.20%.The company had revenue of $781.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $786.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.00 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equity Residential has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.940-0.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 3.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Robert Garechana sold 3,637 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $236,877.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,220,536.20. The trade was a 16.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine Carraway sold 656 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $42,725.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,339 shares in the company, valued at $1,194,419.07. This represents a 3.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,058 shares of company stock valued at $655,078. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential NYSE: EQR is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company's core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.

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