Royal Bank of Canada Sells 84,931 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Royal Bank of Canada lessened its stake in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 14.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 511,441 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 84,931 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.13% of Equity Residential worth $36,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 483,753 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,714,000 after buying an additional 263,622 shares during the period. Vert Asset Management LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 150,245 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $10,782,000 after purchasing an additional 10,472 shares during the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP bought a new position in Equity Residential in the 4th quarter valued at $321,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Equity Residential by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,707 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Equity Residential by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of Equity Residential stock opened at $68.23 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $59.41 and a 12 month high of $78.84. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.83. The stock has a market cap of $25.92 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.89.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.02. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.27% and a net margin of 34.76%. The business had revenue of $760.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $769.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current year.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.6925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.06%. Equity Residential's payout ratio is 105.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on EQR shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $79.69.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.

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