West Oak Capital LLC Has $356,000 Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

West Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 875.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 15,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 14,180 shares during the quarter. West Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in AvalonBay Communities were worth $356,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AVB. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 678.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,715,050 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $386,315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,494,872 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $581,960,000. State Street Corp raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,245,028 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,097,971,000 after acquiring an additional 196,938 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in AvalonBay Communities by 958.9% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 172,618 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,882,000 after acquiring an additional 156,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,256,000. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of AVB stock traded down $1.30 on Friday, reaching $211.07. The company had a trading volume of 857,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 534,655. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $30.02 billion, a PE ratio of 28.87, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $225.46 and a 200-day moving average of $220.09. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.37 and a 12 month high of $239.29.

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

AvalonBay Communities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AVB shares. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $243.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $225.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $244.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $247.00 to $262.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy J. Naughton sold 23,697 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $20,367,689.33. This represents a 21.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.