Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Price Target Raised to $67.00 at Scotiabank

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) had its target price upped by Scotiabank from $66.00 to $67.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Evercore upped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $73.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Equity Residential from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Equity Residential has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.74.

Equity Residential Stock Up 0.1%

EQR opened at $62.78 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $23.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 4.72 and a beta of 0.75. Equity Residential has a one year low of $58.38 and a one year high of $73.91. The business’s fifty day moving average is $62.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.57.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $781.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $786.35 million. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.98% and a net margin of 36.20%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. Equity Residential has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.940-0.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Equity Residential will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.6925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is presently 94.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Catherine Carraway sold 656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $42,725.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,194,419.07. This trade represents a 3.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 5,765 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total transaction of $375,474.45. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 46,131 shares in the company, valued at $3,004,512.03. The trade was a 11.11% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,058 shares of company stock valued at $655,078. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 2.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,597,658 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,728,296,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281,354 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Equity Residential during the 4th quarter valued at $2,201,674,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Equity Residential by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,922,935 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,630,103,000 after buying an additional 688,854 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,258,275 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $644,412,000 after buying an additional 114,604 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 9,242,013 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $582,617,000 after buying an additional 44,127 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Equity Residential News

Here are the key news stories impacting Equity Residential this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist Financial initiated/issued a Buy on EQR — a clear positive catalyst that can draw fresh buyer interest and supports sentiment around the REIT. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane raised its price target to $68 (from $66) but kept a Neutral rating — this increases implied upside (~8%) but stops short of an upgrade. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Scotiabank nudged its target to $67 and kept a “sector perform” rating — a modest vote of confidence but not a strong bullish signal. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presented at Citi’s Miami Global Property CEO Conference; the transcript provides updated commentary on operations and strategy that investors can use to gauge leasing trends and capital allocation (no major surprises reported). Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage roundup published — broader analyst commentary on EQR and peer REITs that reiterates sector themes (pricing power in key coastal markets, demand/occupancy sensitivity). Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research trimmed near-term EPS estimates (Q1 FY2027 down to $0.99 from $1.00; FY2027 and FY2028 cuts were marginal). These small downgrades signal slightly weaker near-term earnings expectations and cap some upside until leasing/rents accelerate. (Source: Zacks research notes)

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.