Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $22.70.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Monday, May 5th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Monday, April 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Compass Point reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Independence Realty Trust from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th.

Independence Realty Trust Trading Up 2.8%

IRT stock traded up $0.49 during trading on Monday, reaching $17.90. The stock had a trading volume of 4,988,731 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,990,115. Independence Realty Trust has a 52 week low of $17.10 and a 52 week high of $22.26. The stock's 50 day moving average is $18.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.58. The firm has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of 127.84, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.96.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.01). Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 4.70% and a return on equity of 0.85%. The firm had revenue of $160.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.27 EPS. The firm's revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Independence Realty Trust will post 1.19 EPS for the current year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. This is a boost from Independence Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Independence Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 457.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Independence Realty Trust

In other news, CEO Scott Schaeffer sold 10,000 shares of Independence Realty Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.21, for a total value of $212,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 873,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,524,071.65. The trade was a 1.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 11,500 shares of company stock worth $241,445 in the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Independence Realty Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IRT. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in Independence Realty Trust by 131.4% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,254 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in Independence Realty Trust by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Independence Realty Trust by 627.5% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,328 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Independence Realty Trust by 67.1% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,491 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Independence Realty Trust during the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. 88.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: IRT is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.