AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) Position Increased by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 344,833 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 5,238 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.24% of AvalonBay Communities worth $75,853,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 42.6% in the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 442 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley downgraded AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $236.00 to $223.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AvalonBay Communities presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.64.

AvalonBay Communities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AVB opened at $214.73 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $217.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.27. The company has a market capitalization of $30.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.29, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.40 and a twelve month high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts expect that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 92.23%.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.