Mechanics Bank Trust Department Sells 2,115 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Key Points

• Mechanics Bank Trust Department reduced its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 11.8%, selling 2,115 shares and holding 15,779 shares worth approximately $3.2 million.
• Analysts have downgraded AvalonBay Communities' price targets, with Wells Fargo reducing it from $244 to $213, while the average rating remains "Hold" with a consensus price target of $218.42.
• AvalonBay Communities declared a quarterly dividend of $1.75 per share, translating to an annual yield of 3.6%, with a payout ratio currently at 86.21%.

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lowered its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,779 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 2,115 shares during the quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department's holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $3,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AVB. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $928,000. Lewis Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the second quarter valued at approximately $331,000. CX Institutional increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 6.3% during the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 973 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $198,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 458 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perpetual Ltd increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 10,650 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,167,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $251.00 to $249.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Monday, August 4th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $241.00 to $228.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $228.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $218.42.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of AVB stock traded up $0.25 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $193.21. 1,079,515 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 794,830. The stock has a market cap of $27.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.79, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $180.40 and a 12-month high of $239.29. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $193.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $201.21.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $689.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $759.08 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 38.91% and a return on equity of 9.70%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.77 earnings per share. AvalonBay Communities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.190-11.590 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS. On average, analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.21%.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.