AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Short Interest Down 10.4% in March

AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,470,000 shares, a decrease of 10.4% from the March 15th total of 1,640,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 804,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now 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 can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AVB. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at $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 raised its stake 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 valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 316.7% during the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 225 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AVB. Mizuho decreased 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 report on Wednesday, February 28th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $175.00 to $191.50 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $206.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $194.00 to $204.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $196.78.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $179.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $25.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.33, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $180.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.80. AvalonBay Communities has a one year low of $160.45 and a one year high of $198.65.

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

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.82%.

AvalonBay Communities Company 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.