O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Acquires 1,844 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 77,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,844 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $5,595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EQR. Keybank National Association OH lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $502,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,827 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Equity Residential by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Equity Residential by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,604 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Residential Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Equity Residential stock opened at $71.26 on Wednesday. Equity Residential has a 52-week low of $59.48 and a 52-week high of $78.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $71.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.38.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.6925 dividend. 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 3.89%. This is a boost from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 101.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $309,425.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,016,622.48. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EQR. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays lowered their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.51.

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.