Panagora Asset Management Inc. Sells 2,435 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. cut its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 36.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,241 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,435 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $877,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.6% in the second quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department lifted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department now owns 17,934 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,710,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1.1% during the first quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 5,529 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. West Coast Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 3.9% during the first quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,732 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 1.1% during the first quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of AVB stock opened at $225.73 on Monday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.45 and a fifty-two week high of $226.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.03. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $195.91.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The real estate investment trust reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.93). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.16% and a net margin of 29.61%. The business had revenue of $726.04 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.66 EPS. Equities analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AvalonBay Communities news, SVP Keri A. Shea sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.17, for a total transaction of $414,340.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $908,026.11. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CIO Matthew H. Birenbaum sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.90, for a total transaction of $1,044,500.00. Following the sale, the executive now owns 65,967 shares in the company, valued at $13,780,506.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Keri A. Shea sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.17, for a total transaction of $414,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $908,026.11. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $210.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $218.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $203.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $214.47.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.