Wedbush Raises Earnings Estimates for AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) – Stock analysts at Wedbush increased their FY2025 earnings estimates for AvalonBay Communities in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 6th. Wedbush analyst R. Anderson now forecasts that the real estate investment trust will post earnings of $11.75 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $11.68. The consensus estimate for AvalonBay Communities’ current full-year earnings is $11.01 per share.

AVB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $210.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $227.06.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

AVB opened at $233.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.03. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $225.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.26 billion, a PE ratio of 31.99, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities has a 52-week low of $164.76 and a 52-week high of $236.26.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 36.20%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the first quarter valued at about $609,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 124.7% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $194,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 24.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,831 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4,563.7% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 212,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,488,000 after purchasing an additional 208,240 shares during the period. Finally, Mystic Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 47.7% in the first quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,290 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $425,000 after buying an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.