Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target Raised to $280.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its target price upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $262.00 to $280.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target points to a potential upside of 0.50% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $273.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays raised their price target on Essex Property Trust from $272.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Evercore upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “cautious” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $295.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.97.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Essex Property Trust stock traded up $5.96 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $278.60. The company had a trading volume of 107,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,312. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $256.74. Essex Property Trust has a 1 year low of $238.46 and a 1 year high of $294.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $17.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.21, a P/E/G ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 0.72.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly 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). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 30.03%.The firm had revenue of $484.76 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $479.89 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.97 EPS. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 16.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Essex Property Trust

In other news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,394 shares in the company, valued at $669,003.30. This trade represents a 20.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.47% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth $230,690,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 973.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 743,954 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $199,127,000 after acquiring an additional 674,617 shares in the last quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 473.5% in the third quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 516,756 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $138,315,000 after purchasing an additional 426,650 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Essex Property Trust by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,679,607 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $439,520,000 after purchasing an additional 301,349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 31.3% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 958,090 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $250,714,000 after buying an additional 228,165 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.