LGT Capital Partners LTD. Sells 8,600 Shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

LGT Capital Partners LTD. lessened its holdings in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 10.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,590 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 8,600 shares during the quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $5,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQR. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Equity Residential during the first quarter worth about $241,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the first quarter valued at approximately $220,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 19.7% in the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 28,396 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,792,000 after acquiring an additional 4,664 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 35.8% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 865 shares during the period. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 8.6% in the first quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 27,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after acquiring an additional 2,150 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE EQR opened at $74.42 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Equity Residential has a 52 week low of $54.70 and a 52 week high of $78.83. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $74.31 and its 200 day moving average is $70.86. The company has a market cap of $28.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.50, a PEG ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.90.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 24th were paid a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 24th. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 110.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on EQR. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $81.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America downgraded shares of Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $78.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.25.

Equity Residential 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.