Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Grows Stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 442.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 27,902 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,761 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $7,468,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ESS. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 2.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,388,169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,540,570,000 after buying an additional 129,806 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,157,617 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $309,848,000 after acquiring an additional 100,730 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 929,187 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $248,703,000 after acquiring an additional 5,483 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 882,010 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $233,668,000 after acquiring an additional 32,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 28.3% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 860,854 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $243,910,000 after acquiring an additional 189,663 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ESS opened at $240.63 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $15.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.12, a PEG ratio of 7.54 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s fifty day moving average is $253.48 and its 200 day moving average is $257.88. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $239.99 and a 52 week high of $310.10.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.00 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $479.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $474.66 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.61%. During the same period last 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. Research analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $2.59 per share. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 98.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ESS. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $279.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $275.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $282.00 price target (down from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust currently 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.