Vanderbilt University Has $2.73 Million Stock Position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Vanderbilt University grew its holdings in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,098 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 914 shares during the period. Vanderbilt University’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $2,734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Equity Residential in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Equity Residential by 2,529.4% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Equity Residential during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Equity Residential by 69.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on EQR shares. StockNews.com cut Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Equity Residential from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $77.75 to $81.50 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Equity Residential from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.36.

Equity Residential Stock Up 1.9 %

NYSE EQR opened at $71.99 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $27.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.50, a PEG ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $57.33 and a 1-year high of $78.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average of $71.24 and a 200-day moving average of $72.71.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is 99.26%.

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.