Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Raised to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Monday.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on EQR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America lowered shares of Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $83.00 price objective for the company. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.69.

Equity Residential Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $69.46 on Monday. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $57.33 and a 1 year high of $78.83. The company has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $72.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is currently 110.66%.

Institutional Trading of Equity Residential

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Equity Residential by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,454 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $750,000 after purchasing an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 4th quarter valued at $351,000. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 4th quarter worth $1,997,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Equity Residential by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 103,872 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,454,000 after acquiring an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in Equity Residential by 87.2% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 8,706 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 4,056 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

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.