Ascent Group LLC Invests $2.90 Million in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Ascent Group LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 12,865 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $2,898,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 1,877.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 178 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 201 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates upgraded AvalonBay Communities to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $234.00 to $233.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. 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 report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $213.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.67.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of AVB stock opened at $235.35 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap of $33.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.20, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $226.85 and its 200 day moving average is $215.37. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.37 and a 1-year high of $239.29.

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

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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