National Pension Service Increases Stock Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB – Get Rating) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 264,191 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,994 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $47,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $995,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,351 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $617,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 1,448 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,708 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $526,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aurora Investment Managers LLC. increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. now owns 4,738 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. 87.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of AVB stock opened at $165.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 2.04. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $157.69 and a 1 year high of $259.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $173.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.15 billion, a PE ratio of 20.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.90.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.65 per share. This represents a $6.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 30th. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.59. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 78.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AVB. KeyCorp lowered their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $237.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $206.00 to $197.00 in a report on Friday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $197.00 to $187.00 in a report on Thursday, December 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $194.00 to $179.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.78.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

(Get Rating)

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: Established Communities, Other Stabilized Communities, and Development or Redevelopment Communities.