Sophron Capital Management L.P. Takes $3.01 Million Position in Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS)

Sophron Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 45,191 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $3,010,000. Equity LifeStyle Properties comprises about 1.2% of Sophron Capital Management L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ELS. National Pension Service purchased a new stake in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 121.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 383 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 564 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 68.2% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 898 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. 97.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of ELS traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $63.38. The stock had a trading volume of 899,149 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,300,264. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.02 and a quick ratio of 0.03. Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.86 and a 52-week high of $76.60. The business's fifty day moving average is $64.96 and its 200 day moving average is $66.86. The firm has a market cap of $12.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.76.

Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE:ELS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83. Equity LifeStyle Properties had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 23.12%. The firm had revenue of $327.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.34 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. Equity LifeStyle Properties's dividend payout ratio is currently 106.74%.

Insider Activity at Equity LifeStyle Properties

In other Equity LifeStyle Properties news, CFO Paul Seavey sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.72, for a total transaction of $647,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 78,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,058,644.64. This trade represents a 11.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $69.00 to $68.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $72.00 to $71.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.33.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Profile

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.