Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday.

Separately, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Empire State Realty Trust from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Empire State Realty Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Empire State Realty Trust stock opened at $8.56 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.55 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $9.54 and its 200 day moving average is $10.36. Empire State Realty Trust has a 1 year low of $8.53 and a 1 year high of $11.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 3.72 and a quick ratio of 3.72.

Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.19. Empire State Realty Trust had a return on equity of 2.84% and a net margin of 6.45%. The business had revenue of $155.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $192.62 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Empire State Realty Trust will post 0.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Empire State Realty Trust

In other Empire State Realty Trust news, EVP Thomas P. Durels sold 3,193 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.90, for a total transaction of $34,803.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 96,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,055,196.30. This trade represents a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 13.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Empire State Realty Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESRT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,844,999 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $204,800,000 after purchasing an additional 461,421 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 42.4% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 9,235,041 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $95,306,000 after purchasing an additional 2,750,045 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 4.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,758,869 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $41,648,000 after purchasing an additional 171,056 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 3,720,315 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,394,000 after purchasing an additional 90,758 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,419,970 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,302,000 after purchasing an additional 13,045 shares in the last quarter. 67.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Empire State Realty Trust Company Profile

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESRT) is a NYC-focused REIT that owns and operates a portfolio of modernized, amenitized, and well-located office, retail, and multifamily assets. The company is the recognized leader in energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality. ESRT’s flagship Empire State Building – the “World’s Most Famous Building” – includes its Observatory, Tripadvisor’s 2023 Travelers’ Choice Awards: Best of the Best the #1 attraction in the US for two consecutive years.