Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 22,783 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group increased its Essex Property Trust stake 10.5%, buying 22,783 shares in the third quarter to hold 238,747 shares, valued at about $64.3 million.
• Essex reported quarterly EPS of $1.52, below the $4.01 consensus estimate, while revenue of $492.7 million slightly exceeded forecasts. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $298.27.
• The REIT declared a quarterly dividend of $2.59 per share, equivalent to $10.36 annually and a stated yield of 3.9%.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 10.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 238,747 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 22,783 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.37% of Essex Property Trust worth $64,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,166,555,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 995,810 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $240,989,000 after acquiring an additional 57,173 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at about $260,252,000. Rush Island Management LP lifted its position in Essex Property Trust by 26.8% during the first quarter. Rush Island Management LP now owns 807,893 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $195,510,000 after acquiring an additional 170,682 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 23,177.2% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 757,439 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $220,862,000 after acquiring an additional 754,185 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $264.74 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $273.44 and a 200-day moving average of $269.81. The company has a market capitalization of $17.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47, a P/E/G ratio of 7.86 and a beta of 0.69. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $238.46 and a 1 year high of $303.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.01 by ($2.49). The company had revenue of $492.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $491.01 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 17.84% and a return on equity of 6.24%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.97 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a $2.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 192.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $292.75 to $285.50 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 target price on Essex Property Trust in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Mizuho cut shares of Essex Property Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $308.00 to $295.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $297.00 to $279.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $298.27.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily apartment communities. The company focuses on providing rental housing in high-demand markets and generates revenue primarily from apartment rents and related resident services.

Founded in 1971 and headquartered in San Mateo, California, Essex operates primarily in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, and the Seattle metropolitan area.

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