Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Purchased by Greenleaf Trust

Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 948 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $271,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 732.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 719,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $212,583,000 after buying an additional 633,200 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 3rd quarter worth about $84,393,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 154.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 444,391 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $131,282,000 after purchasing an additional 269,923 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 16.1% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,329,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $392,766,000 after purchasing an additional 183,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in Essex Property Trust by 201.7% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 225,768 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $64,443,000 after purchasing an additional 150,927 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 3.2 %

ESS opened at $296.24 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $287.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $292.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $19.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.61, a P/E/G ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 0.92. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.06 and a 12 month high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $2.52. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. As a group, research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on ESS shares. Mizuho cut their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on Essex Property Trust from $316.00 to $302.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James downgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $323.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $314.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.32.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.