Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Shares Purchased by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,210,383 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 136,275 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 1.11% of Equity Residential worth $302,137,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Equity Residential by 607.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Equity Residential in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,558,634.42. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. This trade represents a 2.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on EQR shares. StockNews.com upgraded Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.51.

Equity Residential Stock Up 0.2 %

EQR opened at $71.38 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $70.95 and its 200-day moving average is $72.47. Equity Residential has a one year low of $59.48 and a one year high of $78.84. The company has a market capitalization of $27.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.6925 dividend. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.84%.

Equity Residential Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.