Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Bought by Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 326.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,864 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 113,178 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Essex Property Trust worth $36,199,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 112.3% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 138 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 645.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In related news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 this link. Also, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total transaction of $1,051,860.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock traded down $5.20 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $280.80. 576,986 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 373,001. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $203.85 and a 12-month high of $292.37. The stock has a market cap of $18.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 3.19. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $273.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $252.51.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were given a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on ESS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $244.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $250.00 to $275.00 in a report on Monday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $262.15.

Essex Property Trust 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.