Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Acquires 357,268 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS - Free Report) by 201.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 534,964 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 357,268 shares during the quarter. Essex Property Trust makes up about 0.8% of Daiwa Securities Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. owned about 0.83% of Essex Property Trust worth $132,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 120 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 89.4% in the first quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 125 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the first quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on ESS. Barclays raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Bank of America upgraded Essex Property Trust from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $250.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essex Property Trust has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $245.37.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Essex Property Trust stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $232.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 342,553 shares, compared to its average volume of 398,653. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 3.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $237.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.48. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $203.85 and a 12 month high of $252.85. The company has a market capitalization of $14.94 billion, a PE ratio of 36.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.80.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.21%. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. Essex Property Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 155.31%.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.