Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) Coverage Initiated at Wells Fargo & Company

Equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) in a research note issued on Wednesday. The brokerage set an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 15.32% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Independence Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $20.00 to $24.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Independence Realty Trust from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.00.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:IRT opened at $20.81 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $20.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.28. Independence Realty Trust has a 52 week low of $15.23 and a 52 week high of $22.26. The company has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.18.

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.24. Independence Realty Trust had a return on equity of 1.11% and a net margin of 6.15%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Independence Realty Trust will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Independence Realty Trust

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IRT. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,292 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $442,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 66.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 0.5% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 99,984 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 526 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 122,544 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,304,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Independence Realty Trust by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 133,831 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,654,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the period. 88.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.