Synovus Financial Corp Raises Position in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,763 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,629 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities were worth $4,729,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the second quarter worth $26,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 82.4% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 239 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. 93.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MAA. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $169.00 to $165.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $187.00 price target for the company. Raymond James raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $173.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $162.68.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MAA opened at $157.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $18.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.90. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $121.51 and a 52-week high of $167.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.71.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by ($1.20). Mid-America Apartment Communities had a net margin of 23.84% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $551.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $548.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.29 earnings per share. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $1.515 dividend. This is a boost from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s payout ratio is presently 132.73%.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Company Profile

MAA, an S&P 500 company, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on delivering full-cycle and superior investment performance for shareholders through the ownership, management, acquisition, development and redevelopment of quality apartment communities primarily in the Southeast, Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.