BNP Paribas Financial Markets Acquires 91,861 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 54.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 259,531 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 91,861 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $58,459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AVB. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 487.8% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 359,474 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $74,372,000 after buying an additional 298,322 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth approximately $581,960,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 958.9% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 172,618 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,882,000 after buying an additional 156,316 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter worth approximately $29,256,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the second quarter worth approximately $26,755,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of AVB stock opened at $237.74 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $226.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $214.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $33.82 billion, a PE ratio of 32.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.97. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $734.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 36.20%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 2,261 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.78, for a total transaction of $528,576.58. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 111,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,051,508.08. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AVB. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $222.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $226.88.

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.