Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Given New $72.00 Price Target at Scotiabank

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) had its price target hoisted by analysts at Scotiabank from $65.00 to $72.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “sector perform” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Scotiabank’s price objective points to a potential upside of 7.62% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $71.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $58.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Raymond James raised shares of Equity Residential from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.22.

Equity Residential Price Performance

EQR traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $66.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 323,737 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,059,505. The stock has a market cap of $25.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $63.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Equity Residential has a 12 month low of $52.57 and a 12 month high of $69.45.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Equity Residential had a net margin of 31.70% and a return on equity of 8.18%. The firm had revenue of $730.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $728.09 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Equity Residential will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Alexander Brackenridge sold 4,027 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total value of $261,795.27. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 69,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,264.01. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Alexander Brackenridge sold 4,027 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total value of $261,795.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 69,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,264.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mary Kay Haben sold 3,241 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.48, for a total value of $212,220.68. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $636,465.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 593.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 458 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Equity Residential by 120.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 488 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Equity Residential during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.