Synovus Financial Corp Lowers Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Synovus Financial Corp reduced its stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR - Free Report) by 49.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,707 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 8,488 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in Equity Residential were worth $625,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Keybank National Association OH raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $502,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its holdings in Equity Residential by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in Equity Residential by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,827 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,604 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company's stock.

Equity Residential Stock Up 2.1 %

Equity Residential stock traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,709,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,718,631. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $59.41 and a 1 year high of $78.84. The business has a fifty day moving average of $69.64 and a 200 day moving average of $71.34. The stock has a market cap of $26.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.34, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.6925 dividend. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.02%. This is an increase from Equity Residential's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EQR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Equity Residential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 target price on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $78.51.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equity Residential news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $309,425.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,108 shares in the company, valued at $1,016,622.48. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Equity Residential 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 affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.