Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 6,811 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 65,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,811 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $15,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Segment Wealth Management LLC grew its position in AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% during the second quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.1% in the third quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% in the third quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 1,934 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AVB shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.88.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 3.6 %

AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $226.38 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $225.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $210.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 2.03 and a quick ratio of 2.03. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $164.76 and a fifty-two week high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.06%.

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.