Norges Bank Invests $1.50 Billion in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,814,794 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,499,050,000. Norges Bank owned about 4.79% of AvalonBay Communities at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new stake in AvalonBay Communities during the fourth quarter worth $66,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $213.83 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $217.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $222.64. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.40 and a twelve month high of $239.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 37.13%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is 92.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $247.00 to $262.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.