Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. $ELS Shares Purchased by Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. has increased its stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. by 6.9%, bringing its total ownership to 110,168 shares valued at approximately $7.3 million.
• Equity Lifestyle Properties announced a quarterly dividend of $0.515 per share, representing a 3.4% yield, with the ex-dividend date on September 26th.
• Analyst ratings for Equity Lifestyle Properties are largely positive, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of about $71.50, despite some recent target price adjustments.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS - Free Report) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 110,168 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 7,069 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of Equity Lifestyle Properties worth $7,326,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELS. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 31.1% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 84,332 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,617,000 after purchasing an additional 20,011 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties in the 4th quarter valued at about $6,762,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 121.4% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 383 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 11,216 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 4,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 156.9% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 522,262 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,782,000 after buying an additional 318,938 shares during the last quarter. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Price Performance

Shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties stock traded down $1.06 during trading on Monday, hitting $59.62. 695,052 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,530,130. The company has a quick ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.15 and a fifty-two week high of $76.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $61.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.06.

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.69. The firm had revenue of $313.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.59 million. Equity Lifestyle Properties had a net margin of 24.13% and a return on equity of 21.12%. Equity Lifestyle Properties's revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 26th. Equity Lifestyle Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ELS shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from $82.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Compass Point raised Equity Lifestyle Properties from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $72.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Equity Lifestyle Properties from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.50.

About Equity Lifestyle Properties

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of lifestyle-oriented properties consisting primarily of manufactured home, and recreational vehicle communities. It operates through the following segments: Property Operations and Home Sales and Rentals Operations.