Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Has $488,000 Holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. cut its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 16.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,607 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 516 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $488,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanderbilt University increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.6% during the third quarter. Vanderbilt University now owns 3,728 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $640,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.4% during the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,387 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $753,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 11.8% during the third quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 624 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 10,723 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,842,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 1.2 %

AVB opened at $184.13 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $181.15 and its 200 day moving average is $177.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.11, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.92. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.45 and a fifty-two week high of $198.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($1.03). The firm had revenue of $704.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $701.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 33.56% and a return on equity of 7.98%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.59 EPS. Research analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.69%. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 103.82%.

Insider Activity at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other AvalonBay Communities news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’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 transaction of $323,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AVB shares. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $191.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $206.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $175.00 to $191.50 in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $196.78.

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.