SVB Wealth LLC Cuts Stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

SVB Wealth LLC reduced its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,467 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 284 shares during the quarter. SVB Wealth LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $1,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 255.6% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 192 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,542.9% during the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 230 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 316.7% in the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 225 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AVB stock opened at $182.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.79, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $180.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.85. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.45 and a 52-week high of $198.65.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($1.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 33.56% and a return on equity of 7.98%. The company had revenue of $704.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $701.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.59 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 103.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $191.00 price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Barclays raised AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $194.00 to $204.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $175.00 to $191.50 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Wolfe Research cut shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $196.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at AvalonBay Communities

In other news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other AvalonBay Communities news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total transaction of $323,925.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AvalonBay Communities Profile

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.