Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $1.77 Million Stock Holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 8.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 23,768 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,220 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Equity Residential were worth $1,770,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 1st quarter worth approximately $241,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equity Residential during the first quarter valued at $220,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 28,396 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,792,000 after buying an additional 4,664 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Equity Residential by 35.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $207,000 after purchasing an additional 865 shares during the period. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 27,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equity Residential Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $74.42 on Tuesday. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $54.70 and a 12-month high of $78.83. The company has a market cap of $28.24 billion, a PE ratio of 30.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.31 and a 200 day moving average of $70.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 24th were paid a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 24th. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 110.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EQR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America downgraded Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $82.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Wedbush increased their price objective on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Equity Residential from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $77.00 in a report on Monday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.25.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.