Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Acquires Shares of 5,738 AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 5,738 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,292,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 1,934 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AVB shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Scotiabank decreased 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 note on Thursday, November 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of 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. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $226.88.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $228.14 on Thursday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.37 and a twelve month high of $236.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market capitalization of $32.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $226.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $213.38.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $734.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

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.