Twin Capital Management Inc. Reduces Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Twin Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,508 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 141 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 5.6% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,087,597 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,711,547,000 after purchasing an additional 531,677 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $1,001,550,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 18.5% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,863,429 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $817,348,000 after purchasing an additional 759,388 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,833,571 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $812,332,000 after purchasing an additional 106,604 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.1% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,157,645 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $529,565,000 after purchasing an additional 66,300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of AVB opened at $182.05 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $180.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.85. The stock has a market cap of $25.88 billion, a PE ratio of 27.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.92. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.45 and a 12 month high of $198.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $701.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.59 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $1.70 dividend. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 103.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $206.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $175.00 to $191.50 in a report on Monday, February 26th. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $207.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $196.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.