Korea Investment CORP Purchases 18,851 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Korea Investment CORP lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 299,901 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 18,851 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.08% of Equity Residential worth $21,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 607.8% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Equity Residential by 109.5% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 551 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE EQR opened at $71.38 on Friday. Equity Residential has a fifty-two week low of $59.48 and a fifty-two week high of $78.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.24, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $70.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.49.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.6925 dividend. This is a positive change from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on EQR. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 target price on Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.51.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In other news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 35,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,558,634.42. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Equity Residential Company Profile

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.