Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $69.4583.

Several research firms have weighed in on ELS. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Equity Lifestyle Properties from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “inline” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised Equity Lifestyle Properties to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Tuesday, January 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Lifestyle Properties

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ELS. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,268,436 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $824,943,000 after purchasing an additional 237,090 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 32.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,823,626 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $414,194,000 after acquiring an additional 1,674,281 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 114.5% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,375,154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $326,272,000 after acquiring an additional 2,868,678 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,724,515 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $291,363,000 after acquiring an additional 515,063 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 0.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,071,627 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $250,491,000 after purchasing an additional 20,600 shares in the last quarter. 97.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Stock Performance

NYSE:ELS opened at $63.37 on Friday. Equity Lifestyle Properties has a 1 year low of $58.15 and a 1 year high of $70.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.05 and a quick ratio of 0.05. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.28. The company has a market capitalization of $12.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.77.

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. Equity Lifestyle Properties had a return on equity of 20.99% and a net margin of 24.97%.The business had revenue of $393.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $389.39 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Equity Lifestyle Properties will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th were issued a $0.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Equity Lifestyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.52%.

About Equity Lifestyle Properties

Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc (NYSE: ELS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in the acquisition, development, ownership and operation of manufactured home communities and recreational vehicle resorts. The company’s portfolio includes more than 450 properties across the United States and Canada, serving over 200,000 residents and visitors. ELS organizes its operations into two primary segments: manufactured housing communities, which provide long-term housing solutions, and upscale RV and seasonal resorts designed for leisure travelers and seasonal patrons.

In its manufactured home division, ELS offers home-site leases combined with community amenities such as landscaped common areas, clubhouses, swimming pools and organized resident events.