Norges Bank Invests $230.69 Million in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Key Points

• Norges Bank bought a new position in Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter, acquiring 881,574 shares worth about $230.69 million and ending with roughly 1.37% of the company.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with 96.51% of Essex Property Trust held by institutions and hedge funds; several large investors, including UBS AM and Principal Financial Group, also increased their stakes.
• Essex reported Q1 earnings of $1.65 per share, well below the consensus estimate, while the board declared a quarterly dividend of $2.59 per share payable July 15, implying a 3.7% yield.

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 881,574 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $230,690,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.37% of Essex Property Trust at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ESS. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 973.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 743,954 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $199,127,000 after buying an additional 674,617 shares during the last quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 473.5% during the third quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 516,756 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $138,315,000 after buying an additional 426,650 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,679,607 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $439,520,000 after buying an additional 301,349 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1,768.0% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 157,438 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $41,198,000 after buying an additional 149,010 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 9.5% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,157,617 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $309,848,000 after buying an additional 100,730 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total value of $167,670.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $669,003.30. This represents a 20.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 3.47% of the company's stock.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

NYSE:ESS opened at $277.48 on Wednesday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $238.46 and a one year high of $294.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $17.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.18, a PEG ratio of 11.96 and a beta of 0.72. The firm's fifty day moving average is $258.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.85.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.96 by ($2.31). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.03% and a return on equity of 10.00%. The business had revenue of $484.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $479.89 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.97 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. Research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.08 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $2.59 dividend. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 116.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $278.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $293.00 price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $272.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $279.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $286.97.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc NYSE: ESS is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.

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