Advisors Asset Management Inc. Sells 776 Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. cut its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,541 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 776 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $347,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1,877.8% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 178 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 261 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $212.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of AvalonBay Communities to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $226.88.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

AVB stock opened at $237.81 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $226.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $214.87. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29. 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 $33.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.97.

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

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at AvalonBay Communities

In related news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.47, for a total value of $5,532,538.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 87,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.