Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest $VMRK Shares Newly Acquired by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Institutional investors added to VMRK: Candriam acquired 120,049 shares worth about $7.3 million in the third quarter. Hedge funds and other institutions now own 92.68% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is mostly neutral: VMRK has an average “Hold” rating and a $71.19 average price target; five analysts rate it Buy and eleven rate it Hold.
• The company’s annualized dividend is $2.81 per share, a 4.2% yield, but its reported payout ratio is unusually high at 1,040.74%. Insiders also sold 58,286 shares worth about $3.74 million over the past 90 days.

Candriam S.C.A. bought a new stake in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest (NYSE:VMRK - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 120,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,321,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMRK. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest in the third quarter valued at about $221,533,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest in the third quarter valued at approximately $85,957,000. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,080,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,636,000. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH purchased a new position in shares of Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,810,000. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest Trading Up 1.0%

Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest stock opened at $66.15 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 245.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.61. Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest has a 52 week low of $57.57 and a 52 week high of $71.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.19 and a quick ratio of 0.19.

Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest (NYSE:VMRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter. Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 27.97%. The firm had revenue of $785.05 million for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest will post 4.08 EPS for the current year.

Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 5th were paid a dividend of $0.7025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 5th. This represents a $2.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest's dividend payout ratio is currently 1,040.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VMRK. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest from $70.00 to $66.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Mizuho upgraded Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $70.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $77.50 price target on Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest in a research report on Monday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $71.19.

Insider Activity at Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest

In other news, EVP Edward M. Schulman sold 16,595 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.29, for a total transaction of $1,066,892.55. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 48,776 shares in the company, valued at $3,135,809.04. This represents a 25.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Charles E. Mueller, Jr. sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.90, for a total transaction of $511,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,027,767.60. The trade was a 33.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 58,286 shares of company stock worth $3,735,822. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Vivmark Residential Common Shares of Beneficial Interest Company Profile

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 high quality long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 78,568 apartment units, located in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco, Southern California and Denver.

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