Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Sold by Mackenzie Financial Corp

Mackenzie Financial Corp trimmed its position in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 80.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 7,038 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 28,913 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $1,745,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 6.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 978,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $207,560,000 after acquiring an additional 55,903 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 9.4% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 828,191 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $175,651,000 after acquiring an additional 71,359 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 13.0% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 776,149 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $164,233,000 after acquiring an additional 89,198 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 5.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 643,250 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $136,427,000 after acquiring an additional 32,706 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 7.8% in the third quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 234,545 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $49,745,000 after acquiring an additional 17,000 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.9 %

ESS opened at $242.15 on Wednesday. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $203.85 and a fifty-two week high of $252.85. 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 company has a fifty day moving average of $237.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.38, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.80.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a $2.45 dividend. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.05%. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is presently 155.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on ESS. Raymond James upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $237.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essex Property Trust presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $245.37.

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.