Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Hits New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Raymond James raised their price target on the stock from $295.00 to $325.00. Raymond James currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Essex Property Trust traded as high as $299.25 and last traded at $299.01, with a volume of 123000 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $296.09.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $269.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised Essex Property Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $276.70.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total transaction of $2,745,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,425,519.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total transaction of $2,745,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,425,519.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,895.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 214.3% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 600.0% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 112.3% in the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 138 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $281.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $259.77. The company has a quick ratio of 3.19, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $19.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.86.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.85 by ($2.40). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 9.14%. The business had revenue of $442.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $433.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.77 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Company 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.