Sterling Investment Management LLC Sells 1,597 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Sterling Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 17.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 7,441 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,597 shares during the period. AvalonBay Communities makes up about 1.3% of Sterling Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Sterling Investment Management LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $1,637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AVB. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays started coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.53.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $219.17 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $224.19 and its 200 day moving average is $220.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.17 billion, a PE ratio of 29.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.99. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.37 and a 1 year high of $239.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. The company had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 93.02%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total transaction of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,367,689.33. This trade represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.