Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Increases Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,682 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $1,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of EQR. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Equity Residential by 2,529.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 208.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 610 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Equity Residential news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.46.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

EQR opened at $75.01 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.58, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $59.48 and a 1-year high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.26%.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.