Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The real estate investment trust reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.00 by ($0.02), Zacks reports. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 45.46% and a return on equity of 14.68%.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

Essex Property Trust stock traded up $5.42 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $253.01. 776,849 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 600,361. Essex Property Trust has a 1-year low of $243.25 and a 1-year high of $316.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market cap of $16.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $256.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $260.83.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.57 per share. This represents a $10.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essex Property Trust

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the second quarter worth approximately $54,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Essex Property Trust during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 70.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA increased its position in Essex Property Trust by 60.5% during the third quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA now owns 345 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 23.0% in the third quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 465 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $290.00 target price on shares of Essex Property Trust in a report on Monday, January 5th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Essex Property Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $305.00 to $280.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $283.00 to $273.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $282.00 price target (down from $304.00) on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $294.00 to $284.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $285.70.

Essex Property Trust Company Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.