Jennison Associates LLC Acquires 92,463 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB - Free Report) by 182.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,037 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 92,463 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.10% of AvalonBay Communities worth $26,779,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AVB. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 17.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,298,186 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $394,690,000 after purchasing an additional 341,332 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 2,140.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 213,727 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,347,000 after acquiring an additional 204,186 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 118.4% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 318,026 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $54,618,000 after acquiring an additional 172,418 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 6.5% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,496,671 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $428,778,000 after acquiring an additional 151,995 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 5.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,278,363 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $391,286,000 after purchasing an additional 126,288 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company's stock.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB traded down $0.04 during trading on Thursday, hitting $191.30. 1,073,207 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 814,883. The company has a market cap of $27.20 billion, a PE ratio of 29.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $182.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $178.52. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.45 and a 12-month high of $198.65.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($1.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 33.56%. The firm had revenue of $704.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $701.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.59 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities's previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. AvalonBay Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $191.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $207.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a "buy" rating and a $206.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research cut AvalonBay Communities from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $194.00 to $204.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $196.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In related news, CFO Kevin P. O'shea sold 5,000 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Kevin P. O'shea sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.