Vanderbilt University Buys Shares of 105,598 Independence Realty Trust, Inc. $IRT

Key Points

• Vanderbilt University opened a new position in Independence Realty Trust, buying 105,598 shares valued at about $1.57 million in the first quarter.
• The REIT recently posted better-than-expected earnings, reporting $0.26 EPS versus $0.03 expected, though revenue of $165.32 million came in slightly below estimates.
• Independence Realty Trust raised its quarterly dividend to $0.18 per share, implying a 4.4% annual yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $20.06 target price.

Vanderbilt University purchased a new position in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 105,598 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $1,572,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,235,002 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $580,948,000 after acquiring an additional 250,549 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,074,813 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $230,705,000 after purchasing an additional 76,635 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 0.3% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 9,139,506 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $161,678,000 after purchasing an additional 30,701 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,445,967 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $112,690,000 after purchasing an additional 148,449 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 209.5% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,649,829 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $98,759,000 after purchasing an additional 3,824,512 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.25% of the company's stock.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE IRT opened at $16.52 on Thursday. The business's 50 day moving average is $16.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.41. The company has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.96. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $14.60 and a 12 month high of $18.18.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $165.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $166.35 million. Independence Realty Trust had a return on equity of 1.35% and a net margin of 7.27%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. Independence Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.120-1.160 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 17th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. This is an increase from Independence Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Independence Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently 340.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on IRT. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Independence Realty Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Independence Realty Trust from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Independence Realty Trust presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $20.06.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust that acquires, redevelops and manages multi-family communities. The company focuses on workforce housing, targeting Class A and B garden-style apartments in suburban and urban infill locations. Its core activities include sourcing value-add acquisitions, overseeing property renovations and delivering in-house property management services to optimize rental income and occupancy levels.

Headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania, Independence Realty Trust maintains a geographically diverse portfolio across several high-growth U.S.

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