Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $69.7250.

Several brokerages have commented on EQR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Piper Sandler set a $78.00 target price on Equity Residential in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $78.50 target price on Equity Residential in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Equity Residential from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets downgraded Equity Residential from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.3%

Equity Residential stock opened at $60.33 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $61.75 and its 200 day moving average is $61.80. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $57.57 and a 12-month high of $72.40. The company has a market capitalization of $22.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.01). Equity Residential had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The business had revenue of $781.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $786.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equity Residential has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.940-0.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 30th will be given a dividend of $0.7025 per share. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 30th. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is 95.90%.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In related news, EVP Catherine Carraway sold 656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $42,725.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,194,419.07. The trade was a 3.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Garechana sold 3,637 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $236,877.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,220,536.20. This represents a 16.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,058 shares of company stock valued at $655,078. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EQR. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Equity Residential by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,475,500 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $93,079,000 after acquiring an additional 310,859 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 87,999 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,549,000 after acquiring an additional 4,238 shares during the last quarter. Storen Legacy Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the 4th quarter worth approximately $340,000. DGS Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the 4th quarter valued at $298,000. Finally, Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 34,144 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,152,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.