Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 203,079 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,286 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $52,169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of ESS. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the first quarter worth about $1,664,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the first quarter worth about $223,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 70.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 186.2% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 33,614 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,526,000 after acquiring an additional 21,871 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 10.9% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 8,274 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,345,000 after acquiring an additional 811 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.4%

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $263.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.38 and a beta of 0.71. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $238.46 and a 52 week high of $294.09. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $252.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $255.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.96 by ($2.31). The company had revenue of $484.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $479.89 million. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 30.03%.During the same period last year, the business earned $3.97 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $2.59 per share. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 116.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $278.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $271.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $268.00 to $262.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $278.00 to $281.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Friday, February 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $282.97.

About Essex Property Trust

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.