TRUE Private Wealth Advisors Buys New Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

TRUE Private Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 824 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 572 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $216,000. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth $967,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on ESS. Raymond James upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Essex Property Trust in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $245.37.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock opened at $233.97 on Friday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $203.85 and a one year high of $252.85. The company has a market cap of $15.02 billion, a PE ratio of 37.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a current ratio of 3.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $237.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $230.51.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were given a dividend of $2.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This is an increase from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.19%. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is currently 155.31%.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.