National Pension Service Raises Stock Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

National Pension Service lifted its stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 9.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 212,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 18,888 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.15% of AvalonBay Communities worth $47,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AVB. Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 8.0% in the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,005,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 336,587 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $75,816,000 after purchasing an additional 36,732 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 65,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $15,110,000 after purchasing an additional 6,811 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 51,154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $11,523,000 after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 36.9% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,139 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AVB. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $210.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.88.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $226.38 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.76 and a 52 week high of $236.26. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $225.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.50. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.06%.

AvalonBay Communities 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.