Bleakley Financial Group LLC Sells 161 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Bleakley Financial Group LLC lessened its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,182 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 161 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $221,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth $3,610,000. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 248,699 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,061 shares during the period. Sterling Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth about $1,625,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 55.5% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 2,890 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $496,000 after purchasing an additional 1,031 shares during the period. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 57,789 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,930,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE:AVB opened at $180.72 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.75. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.45 and a fifty-two week high of $198.65. The firm has a market cap of $25.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 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 company had revenue of $704.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $701.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. Analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.76%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 103.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on AVB. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Wolfe Research cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $207.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $175.00 to $191.50 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $196.78.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of AvalonBay Communities 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’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 directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’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 transaction of $323,925.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Company 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.