Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 1,064 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 23.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,465 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,064 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $859,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 645.2% in 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 during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Essex Property Trust in the 4th quarter worth $76,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 327.1% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 815 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on ESS. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $227.00 target price on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $215.00 to $281.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Mizuho upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $237.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $291.00 price target on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $245.37.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

Shares of ESS stock opened at $247.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $15.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 3.26 and a quick ratio of 3.26. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $238.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.49. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $203.85 and a one year high of $252.85.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were given a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This is a positive change from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 155.31%.

About Essex Property Trust

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.