Vert Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Vert Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 9.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 51,374 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,499 shares during the period. Mid-America Apartment Communities accounts for 2.7% of Vert Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Vert Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities were worth $7,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 321 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 93.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Price Performance

Shares of MAA stock opened at $153.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $155.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.69. The firm has a market cap of $17.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.91. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $121.51 and a 1-year high of $167.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.09.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.18 by ($1.20). The company had revenue of $551.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $548.53 million. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 23.84%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a $1.515 dividend. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. This is an increase from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s payout ratio is 136.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James raised shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $173.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mid-America Apartment Communities currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.00.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

MAA, an S&P 500 company, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on delivering full-cycle and superior investment performance for shareholders through the ownership, management, acquisition, development and redevelopment of quality apartment communities primarily in the Southeast, Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.