Jennison Associates LLC Has $28.23 Million Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 128,325 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 2,407 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $28,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its position 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 valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 2,261 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.78, for a total value of $528,576.58. Following the transaction, the director now owns 111,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,051,508.08. This trade represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $243.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of 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 note on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target 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. Morgan Stanley lowered AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their target price on 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $234.60.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $220.82 on Wednesday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29. The firm has a market cap of $31.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $221.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.87.

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 firm 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $2.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 93.02%.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.