Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Acquired by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 83.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 136,454 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 61,991 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $40,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the third quarter worth $39,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 0.3% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 45,899 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $13,559,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in Essex Property Trust by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 82,949 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,437,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust during the third quarter valued at $236,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 74.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Essex Property Trust

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 7,298 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.31, for a total transaction of $2,308,430.38. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,585 shares in the company, valued at $817,661.35. This represents a 73.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 8,080 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.10, for a total transaction of $2,546,008.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,991,559.40. This trade represents a 45.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,949 shares of company stock valued at $5,663,763. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank upped their target price on Essex Property Trust from $309.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $264.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James cut Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.00.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock opened at $312.84 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $297.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $286.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $20.11 billion, a PE ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 0.88. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 52 week low of $210.36 and a 52 week high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.88 by ($2.04). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. The company had revenue of $450.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $445.88 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $2.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 114.49%.

Essex Property Trust Company 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.