Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Stake Lowered by Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC decreased its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $392,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EQR. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Equity Residential by 593.9% in the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 458 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 120.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 488 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new position in Equity Residential in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA acquired a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Price Performance

EQR traded up $0.81 during trading on Monday, hitting $66.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,443,979 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,113,179. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $62.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.82. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $52.57 and a 12 month high of $69.45.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. Equity Residential had a net margin of 31.70% and a return on equity of 8.18%. The business had revenue of $730.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $728.09 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Equity Residential will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th were given a $0.675 dividend. This is a boost from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 22nd. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is currently 112.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In other news, CFO Robert Garechana sold 876 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.80, for a total value of $50,632.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 20,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,927.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Alexander Brackenridge sold 4,027 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total value of $261,795.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 69,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,544,264.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert Garechana sold 876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.80, for a total transaction of $50,632.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 20,933 shares in the company, valued at $1,209,927.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,860 shares of company stock valued at $566,034 in the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $69.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Equity Residential from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Equity Residential from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.04.

Equity Residential 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.