BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Trims Stock Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lowered its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 0.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 117 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $5,196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AVB. Norges Bank bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth about $1,271,756,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.4% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,759,095 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $883,098,000 after acquiring an additional 109,585 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 6.5% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,496,671 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $428,778,000 after acquiring an additional 151,995 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,298,186 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $394,690,000 after acquiring an additional 341,332 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,838,702 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $344,242,000 after purchasing an additional 25,625 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $210.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $191.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $205.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $203.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $207.17.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE AVB traded down $0.53 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $203.29. 139,692 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 737,940. The firm has a market cap of $28.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.34, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $198.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.45 and a 12-month high of $208.45.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($1.42). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 34.05%. The company had revenue of $712.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $706.61 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.92 EPS for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 101.19%.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.