Zacks Research Upgrades Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) to Hold

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Independence Realty Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Independence Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $18.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Colliers Securities lowered Independence Realty Trust from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Independence Realty Trust currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.61.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

Shares of IRT opened at $15.10 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.99. Independence Realty Trust has a 52 week low of $14.90 and a 52 week high of $21.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $16.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.65.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Independence Realty Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Long Pond Capital LP increased its position in Independence Realty Trust by 564.5% in the second quarter. Long Pond Capital LP now owns 5,500,502 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $97,304,000 after buying an additional 4,672,690 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 16,719.4% during the fourth quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 4,299,707 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $75,159,000 after purchasing an additional 4,274,143 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 209.5% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,649,829 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $98,759,000 after purchasing an additional 3,824,512 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust by 1,435.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,827,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $62,733,000 after buying an additional 3,578,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Independence Realty Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,122,000. 88.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Independence Realty Trust Company 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.