Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $14.38 Million Stake in Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:IRT) by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 701,302 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 52,303 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Independence Realty Trust were worth $14,377,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of IRT. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 99,984 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,050,000 after acquiring an additional 526 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 1.3% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 69,961 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,434,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Independence Realty Trust by 0.3% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 281,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,777,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Independence Realty Trust by 2.0% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 63,011 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,181,000 after buying an additional 1,255 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Independence Realty Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Institutional investors own 88.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IRT has been the topic of a number of research reports. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Independence Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $23.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Independence Realty Trust from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Independence Realty Trust from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $21.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on Independence Realty Trust from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Independence Realty Trust has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.14.

Independence Realty Trust Stock Performance

IRT stock opened at $19.96 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.90. The company has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.19. Independence Realty Trust, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.07 and a 52-week high of $22.26.

Independence Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL.