Cetera Trust Company N.A Sells 75 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Cetera Trust Company N.A lessened its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,230 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 75 shares during the period. Cetera Trust Company N.A’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 59.9% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $215.72 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $30.68 billion, a PE ratio of 29.53, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $223.97 and a 200 day moving average of $221.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 36.20% and a return on equity of 8.84%. The business had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.67 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.02%.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 87,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays began coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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. Finally, Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.53.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

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.