Guggenheim Capital LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Guggenheim Capital LLC lowered its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 76.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 33,421 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 109,263 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $2,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the 4th quarter valued at about $395,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of Equity Residential in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,570,000. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in Equity Residential by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 25,231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,811,000 after purchasing an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Equity Residential by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 4,971 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Equity Residential by 55.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 22,389 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 7,986 shares in the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.7 %

Equity Residential stock opened at $68.16 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a twelve month low of $59.41 and a twelve month high of $78.84. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $71.41.

Equity Residential Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.6925 per share. This is an increase from Equity Residential’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.06%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is 101.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In other Equity Residential news, EVP Scott Fenster sold 5,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $384,800.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 35,507 shares in the company, valued at $2,558,634.42. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Robert Garechana sold 4,294 shares of Equity Residential stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $309,425.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,016,622.48. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,217 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Scotiabank upped their target price on Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 target price on Equity Residential in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.51.

Equity Residential Company 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.