Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Sold by Mutual of America Capital Management LLC

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,907 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 192 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $2,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Essex Property Trust by 4.7% in the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 775 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the second quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 8,698 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,368,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. boosted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 7.4% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 781 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 0.3% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 20,707 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,636,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Essex Property Trust from $265.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $309.00 to $329.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total value of $2,308,430.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $817,661.35. This represents a 73.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 8,080 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.10, for a total value of $2,546,008.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,991,559.40. This trade represents a 45.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 20,402 shares of company stock worth $6,399,663. 3.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $305.53 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $297.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $285.57. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $210.36 and a 52 week high of $317.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.64 billion, a PE ratio of 35.69, a P/E/G ratio of 5.99 and a beta of 0.88.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.88 by ($2.04). The company had revenue of $450.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $445.88 million. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

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.