Short Interest in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Grows By 10.5%

AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,160,000 shares, an increase of 10.5% from the December 15th total of 2,860,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 616,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

NYSE:AVB traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $218.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 553,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,710. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $31.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.85, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $224.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $220.81. AvalonBay Communities has a 12-month low of $169.37 and a 12-month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 93.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. High Probability Advisors LLC raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. High Probability Advisors LLC now owns 3,318 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $730,000 after buying an additional 895 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 52,224 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $11,488,000 after buying an additional 1,070 shares in the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 7,545 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,660,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,326 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perpetual Ltd boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 11,020 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,424,000 after purchasing an additional 1,750 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.53.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.