AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Receives $196.78 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $199.78.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AVB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $191.00 price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Truist Financial reduced their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $201.00 to $197.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley raised AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $175.00 to $191.50 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $191.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.2 %

AvalonBay Communities stock opened at $191.02 on Tuesday. AvalonBay Communities has a twelve month low of $160.45 and a twelve month high of $198.65. The business has a fifty day moving average of $182.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.78. The firm has a market cap of $27.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($1.42). The company had revenue of $712.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $706.61 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 34.05%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.57 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.19%.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,985.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of AvalonBay Communities stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $1,271,756,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,759,095 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $883,098,000 after buying an additional 109,585 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,496,671 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $428,778,000 after buying an additional 151,995 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,298,186 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $394,690,000 after buying an additional 341,332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 5.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,278,363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $391,286,000 after acquiring an additional 126,288 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

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.