Mizuho Cuts Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Price Target to $300.00

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) had its target price cut by Mizuho from $325.00 to $300.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Essex Property Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $297.00 to $303.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $333.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $309.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut Essex Property Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $307.00 to $321.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $305.17.

Essex Property Trust Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Essex Property Trust stock opened at $272.60 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.52 billion, a PE ratio of 31.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $294.46 and its 200 day moving average is $291.49. Essex Property Trust has a 1 year low of $223.06 and a 1 year high of $317.73.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.88 by ($2.04). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 31.55%. The company had revenue of $450.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $445.88 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Essex Property Trust will post 15.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,726,072 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $508,381,000 after acquiring an additional 25,591 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 16.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,329,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $392,766,000 after purchasing an additional 183,947 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.4% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,001,769 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $272,682,000 after purchasing an additional 3,977 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 1.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 941,501 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $256,280,000 after buying an additional 12,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 6.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 754,179 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $222,800,000 after buying an additional 47,114 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.