Short Interest in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) Grows By 19.8%

Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 12,092,966 shares, a growth of 19.8% from the February 26th total of 10,095,983 shares. Approximately 5.2% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,487,656 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.9 days.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Up 0.6%

IRT stock traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $14.90. The company had a trading volume of 3,003,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,860,255. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a PE ratio of 62.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $16.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.55. Independence Realty Trust has a fifty-two week low of $14.63 and a fifty-two week high of $21.56.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32. Independence Realty Trust had a return on equity of 1.58% and a net margin of 8.60%.The business had revenue of $167.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $170.26 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Independence Realty Trust will post 1.19 EPS for the current year.

Independence Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Independence Realty Trust’s payout ratio is 283.33%.

Institutional Trading of Independence Realty Trust

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of IRT. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new stake in Independence Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 70.3% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 747 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on IRT shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Independence Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Friday. Finally, Colliers Securities lowered shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.61.

About Independence Realty Trust

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.