Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Stock Position Raised by Sei Investments Co.

Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 23.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 358,325 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 69,208 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. owned 0.56% of Essex Property Trust worth $88,843,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 645.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tobam bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ESS shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $250.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $256.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $291.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $257.33.

Essex Property Trust Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $268.07. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 262,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 278,280. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $203.85 and a 12 month high of $269.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $251.42 and a 200 day moving average of $241.57. The company has a market capitalization of $17.21 billion, a PE ratio of 32.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 3.19.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.66%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 119.80%.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.