Bard Associates Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. $IRT

Bard Associates Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) by 62.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,496 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 45,160 shares during the period. Bard Associates Inc.’s holdings in Independence Realty Trust were worth $485,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IRT. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 209.5% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,649,829 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $98,759,000 after buying an additional 3,824,512 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 1,435.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,827,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $62,733,000 after buying an additional 3,578,221 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Independence Realty Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $52,122,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Independence Realty Trust during the second quarter worth about $30,368,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in Independence Realty Trust during the third quarter worth about $21,965,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.25% of the company’s stock.

Independence Realty Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IRT opened at $16.85 on Friday. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.60 and a 12-month high of $18.47. The company has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of 84.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $16.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.46.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.23. Independence Realty Trust had a net margin of 7.27% and a return on equity of 1.35%. The company had revenue of $165.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $166.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Independence Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.120-1.160 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Independence Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independence Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Independence Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. Independence Realty Trust’s payout ratio is currently 360.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on IRT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.06.

Independence Realty Trust Profile

Independence Realty Trust is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust that acquires, redevelops and manages multi-family communities. The company focuses on workforce housing, targeting Class A and B garden-style apartments in suburban and urban infill locations. Its core activities include sourcing value-add acquisitions, overseeing property renovations and delivering in-house property management services to optimize rental income and occupancy levels.

Headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania, Independence Realty Trust maintains a geographically diverse portfolio across several high-growth U.S.