Sei Investments Co. Trims Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Sei Investments Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 876,783 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 99,806 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $62,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vert Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Equity Residential by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 150,245 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,782,000 after purchasing an additional 10,472 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the third quarter worth about $923,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,707 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential during the 4th quarter valued at about $321,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 483,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,714,000 after acquiring an additional 263,622 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In related news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,781 shares in the company, valued at $1,930,106.67. This trade represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $384,800.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,558,634.42. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Equity Residential Trading Down 0.5 %

EQR stock opened at $69.85 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $70.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.62. Equity Residential has a fifty-two week low of $59.48 and a fifty-two week high of $78.84. The firm has a market cap of $26.52 billion, a PE ratio of 25.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.6925 dividend. This is a boost from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price target on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.51.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.