Korea Investment CORP Lowers Position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Korea Investment CORP reduced its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,174 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 15,765 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $5,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 23,136 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,193,000 after acquiring an additional 2,395 shares during the period. Barings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $829,000. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,900,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 594,450 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $159,114,000 after purchasing an additional 22,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in Essex Property Trust by 2.1% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 601,341 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $160,955,000 after purchasing an additional 12,446 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:ESS opened at $251.17 on Friday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.25 and a 52 week high of $310.10. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $254.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $258.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $16.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.85 and a beta of 0.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.00 by ($0.02). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The company had revenue of $479.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $474.66 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.92 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.690-16.190 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.890-4.010 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $2.59 dividend. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays decreased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $292.00 to $271.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $282.00 target price (down from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $278.00 target price on Essex Property Trust in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $273.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $282.00.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.