Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires New Shares in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 463,496 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $87,457,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 56.0% during the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 156 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 160 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. BOKF NA acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Wolfe Research raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $209.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, June 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $205.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $196.87.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of AVB stock opened at $184.06 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $26.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $187.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $180.28. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $160.10 and a 52 week high of $198.63.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $777.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $772.37 million. AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 33.33% and a return on equity of 8.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.82 EPS. On average, analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $1.78 dividend. This represents a $7.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 116.34%.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.