Prudential PLC Sells 49,029 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Prudential PLC lessened its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 95.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 49,029 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. Norges Bank bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,394,635,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 76.0% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,355,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $455,077,000 after acquiring an additional 1,017,286 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,497,047 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $815,360,000 after acquiring an additional 383,983 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1,765.8% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 348,068 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $63,108,000 after acquiring an additional 329,413 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 126.5% during the third quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 555,832 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $107,370,000 after acquiring an additional 310,412 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 1.1%

AVB opened at $187.64 on Tuesday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.10 and a fifty-two week high of $209.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $178.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.45. The company has a market capitalization of $26.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.78.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by ($0.47). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.56% and a net margin of 37.21%.The business had revenue of $770.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $768.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.83 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.31 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Wolfe Research raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $209.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $203.00 price target (down from $208.00) on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $191.00 to $189.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $198.44.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.