Yousif Capital Management LLC Sells 1,642 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Yousif Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 38,075 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,642 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $9,440,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 111.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 645.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tobam bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth $60,000. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on ESS shares. Bank of America upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $250.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Barclays upped their price target on Essex Property Trust from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $237.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $291.00 price target on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $245.37.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Shares of ESS traded up $5.59 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $247.74. 395,639 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 396,201. The stock has a market cap of $15.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $237.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.38. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $203.85 and a 1 year high of $252.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a current ratio of 3.26.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a $2.45 dividend. This is an increase from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 155.31%.

About Essex Property Trust

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.