Caxton Associates LP Makes New Investment in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Caxton Associates LP purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 2,172 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $532,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESS. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 112.3% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 138 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 645.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essex Property Trust

In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at $4,425,519.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Essex Property Trust news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at $4,425,519.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,641,895.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ESS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $244.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $255.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $243.50 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $262.15.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Shares of ESS stock opened at $280.80 on Wednesday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.85 and a 1-year high of $292.37. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $273.64 and its 200 day moving average is $252.73. The company has a market cap of $18.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.33, a PEG ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 3.19.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.80%.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

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.