Mizuho Cuts Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Price Target to $74.00

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) had its target price reduced by Mizuho from $78.00 to $74.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Mizuho currently has a neutral rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Bank of America downgraded shares of Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $78.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $83.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $77.75 to $81.50 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.69.

Equity Residential Stock Down 3.6 %

Shares of Equity Residential stock opened at $68.37 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $25.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.02, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $73.02 and its 200 day moving average is $72.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Equity Residential has a one year low of $57.33 and a one year high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is currently 110.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equity Residential

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,001,360 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $346,794,000 after buying an additional 60,000 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the third quarter worth $923,000. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in Equity Residential by 244,571.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 17,127 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 17,120 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 18.7% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 47,997 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,328,000 after purchasing an additional 7,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 129,258 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,625,000 after purchasing an additional 14,109 shares during the period. 92.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equity Residential Company 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.