AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,460 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 813 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $21,804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AVB. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 10,723 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,842,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Alliance increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Toroso Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 26,102 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,483,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 2,498 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lowered their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $191.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $175.00 to $191.50 in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $206.00 price objective for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.78.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:AVB opened at $191.02 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $182.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $178.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $160.45 and a 1-year high of $198.65.

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

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities 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.