Scotiabank Has Lowered Expectations for AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Stock Price

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Scotiabank from $193.00 to $190.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Scotiabank’s target price indicates a potential upside of 6.10% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $199.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $216.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $222.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $200.59.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.5%

AVB opened at $179.07 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.67. AvalonBay Communities has a 12 month low of $166.73 and a 12 month high of $223.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.94.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.01. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 34.57%.The firm had revenue of $767.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $766.38 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AVB. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Tobam raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 850.2% in the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 3,012 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter valued at about $218,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,167 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,931,000 after purchasing an additional 4,820 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth about $632,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.