Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 33,212 Shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 33.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 66,474 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 33,212 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Mid-America Apartment Communities worth $10,275,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MAA. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter worth about $2,890,000. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 203,587 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,350,000 after acquiring an additional 5,178 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 180,689 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,711,000 after acquiring an additional 4,301 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,304,000. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 27.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,484 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,040,000 after purchasing an additional 12,454 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MAA. StockNews.com raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $158.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $152.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mid-America Apartment Communities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $167.00.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Stock Performance

NYSE:MAA opened at $164.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.73 and a fifty-two week high of $167.39. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.46. The company has a market capitalization of $19.20 billion, a PE ratio of 36.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.91.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a net margin of 24.03% and a return on equity of 8.53%. Research analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $1.515 dividend. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. This is an increase from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 15th. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s payout ratio is currently 135.27%.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.