Barclays PLC Raises Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 10.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 154,634 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,305 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.24% of Essex Property Trust worth $41,389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 929,187 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $248,703,000 after acquiring an additional 5,483 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 33,402 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,940,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Essex Property Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $4,015,000. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 6.2% in the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 8,662 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,318,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 23,100.0% in the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,552 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 2,541 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

NYSE ESS opened at $253.91 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 8.01 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50 day moving average is $254.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $258.88. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.25 and a 12-month high of $310.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.00 by ($0.02). Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 35.48% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The business had revenue of $479.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $474.66 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.92 earnings per share. Essex Property Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.690-16.190 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.890-4.010 EPS. Research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $2.59 per share. This is a boost from Essex Property Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ESS shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Essex Property Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $275.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $282.00 price objective (down from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $278.00 target price on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $279.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $282.00.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.