Prudential Financial Inc. Has $76.54 Million Position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Prudential Financial Inc. cut its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 20.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,066,622 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 282,344 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.28% of Equity Residential worth $76,541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keybank National Association OH grew its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 7,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $502,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its holdings in Equity Residential by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,604 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $402,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 31,433 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,256,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Equity Residential news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $683,728.09. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equity Residential has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.51.

Equity Residential Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of EQR opened at $71.40 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.91. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $59.48 and a 12-month high of $78.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.6925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.84%.

Equity Residential Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.