AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $196.78.

A number of research firms have issued reports on AVB. Mizuho reduced their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $207.00 price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $206.00 price target on the stock.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of AVB opened at $186.87 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $26.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.53, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.92. AvalonBay Communities has a fifty-two week low of $160.45 and a fifty-two week high of $198.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $181.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $178.22.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($1.03). The company had revenue of $704.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $701.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 33.56%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that AvalonBay Communities will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $1.70 dividend. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 103.82%.

Insider Transactions at AvalonBay Communities

In other AvalonBay Communities news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total value of $323,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,054,985.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total value of $928,250.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,330.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVB. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,610,000. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 248,699 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,061 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 994,505 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $186,191,000 after purchasing an additional 21,760 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at $1,625,000. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 55.5% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 2,890 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $496,000 after purchasing an additional 1,031 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.