AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale reduced its stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 4,940 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $17,194,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. LDR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 63.9% in the 4th quarter. LDR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,504 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,779,000 after buying an additional 3,706 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $308,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 79,349 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $14,856,000 after buying an additional 9,330 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 302,150 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $57,288,000 after buying an additional 4,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,985.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,985.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $186.14 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $179.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.38. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.45 and a 52-week high of $198.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.92.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($1.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 33.56%. The business had revenue of $704.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $701.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.82 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.65%. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $194.00 to $204.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $191.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $185.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $206.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $207.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $197.03.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

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.