National Pension Service Has $9.08 Million Stock Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

National Pension Service cut its position in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 73.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,701 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 96,654 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $9,081,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 57.5% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the third quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 6,957 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,862,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 445 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 0.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 12,919 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,458,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of ESS opened at $272.90 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $17.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.66, a P/E/G ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 0.72. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $238.46 and a 12 month high of $294.09. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $258.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $256.74.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($2.31). The business had revenue of $484.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.97 EPS. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 16.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $2.59 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ESS. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $273.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $278.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Essex Property Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $290.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $268.00 to $262.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $284.50.

Essex Property Trust 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.