Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Monday morning.

EQR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Equity Residential from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Bank of America downgraded Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $78.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $77.75 to $81.50 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Equity Residential has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.69.

Equity Residential Price Performance

Shares of EQR opened at $69.46 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $72.60 and a 200-day moving average of $72.57. Equity Residential has a 1 year low of $57.33 and a 1 year high of $78.83. The company has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 110.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EQR. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Equity Residential in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 2,529.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 69.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

About Equity Residential

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.