UBS Group Lowers AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Price Target to $216.00

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) had its target price dropped by stock analysts at UBS Group from $238.00 to $216.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. UBS Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 6.96% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AVB. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, June 29th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $240.00 to $241.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $238.00 to $213.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $235.07.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $201.95 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $28.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.85. AvalonBay Communities has a 52 week low of $180.40 and a 52 week high of $239.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $204.30 and a 200 day moving average of $209.88.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $693.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $744.61 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 38.86%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Edward M. Schulman sold 5,945 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.67, for a total transaction of $1,222,708.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,617 shares in the company, valued at $3,623,288.39. This represents a 25.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.57, for a total transaction of $1,245,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 22,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,728,859.74. This trade represents a 20.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 19.9% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $384,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $218,000. CX Institutional raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $198,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 2,648.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners raised its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,855 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.