Strs Ohio Sells 12,897 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Key Points

• Strs Ohio sold 12,897 shares, reducing its stake in Essex Property Trust by 13.6% to 82,145 shares worth $21.50 million (about 0.13% ownership) during the fourth quarter.
• Essex missed quarterly EPS—reported $1.65 vs. $3.96 expected (a $2.31 shortfall)—while revenue of $484.76 million slightly beat estimates, and the company set Q2 2026 guidance of EPS 3.920–4.040.
• Quarterly dividend raised to $2.59 (annualized $10.36), yielding about 3.9%, with a dividend payout ratio of 116.4%.

Strs Ohio decreased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,145 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 12,897 shares during the period. Strs Ohio owned 0.13% of Essex Property Trust worth $21,496,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ESS. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 913 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 6,957 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,862,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 445 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 12,919 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,458,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.0%

ESS stock opened at $263.47 on Monday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $238.46 and a 1-year high of $294.09. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $251.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $254.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.60, a P/E/G ratio of 8.25 and a beta of 0.71.

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 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.96 by ($2.31). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 30.03%.The business had revenue of $484.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $479.89 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.97 EPS. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $2.59 dividend. This is an increase from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ESS shares. Piper Sandler upgraded Essex Property Trust from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Essex Property Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $278.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $267.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $280.72.

Essex Property Trust Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.