Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE) Sees Large Volume Increase - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares traded about 1,114,204 on Thursday (roughly 25% below the prior session) with the stock near $18.92.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of Hold and an average target of $19.50; Truist and Citi recently lifted targets to $19 while the street shows one Buy and four Holds.
• Latest quarter missed on EPS (‑$0.15 vs. $0.18 est.) but revenue beat at $70.1M; the company pays a $0.08 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.32, ~1.7% yield, DPR 40%).

Shares of Veris Residential, Inc. (NYSE:VRE - Get Free Report) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 1,114,204 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 25% from the previous session's volume of 1,486,431 shares.The stock last traded at $18.9150 and had previously closed at $18.93.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on VRE shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Veris Residential from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Veris Residential in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Veris Residential from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Veris Residential from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $19.50.

Veris Residential Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.64, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $18.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.33). The firm had revenue of $70.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.06 million. Veris Residential had a return on equity of 5.73% and a net margin of 26.08%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Veris Residential, Inc. will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Veris Residential Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Veris Residential's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

Institutional Trading of Veris Residential

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Veris Residential by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,270 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Veris Residential by 71.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in Veris Residential by 3.6% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 23,892 shares of the company's stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 827 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Veris Residential by 2.8% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 33,241 shares of the company's stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in Veris Residential by 1.9% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 49,743 shares of the company's stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. 93.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Veris Residential

Veris Residential, Inc NYSE: VRE is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that focuses on the acquisition, development, ownership and management of high-quality, Class A multifamily residential communities. As a pure-play residential REIT, Veris Residential offers a range of apartment homes designed to appeal to both urban and suburban renters seeking modern living spaces enhanced with amenities and services.

The company's portfolio consists of contemporary apartment buildings that feature studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans.

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