Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 315,162 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 13,637 shares during the period. Mid-America Apartment Communities accounts for 1.4% of Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC owned about 0.27% of Mid-America Apartment Communities worth $48,715,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MAA. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 37.2% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 251 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter valued at about $45,000. 93.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:MAA opened at $166.78 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.23, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.73 and a 12 month high of $167.73. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $154.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $156.53.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $1.19. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.53% and a net margin of 24.03%. On average, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th were issued a $1.515 dividend. This represents a $6.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. This is an increase from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s dividend payout ratio is 135.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MAA has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price 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. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $152.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $158.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $167.00.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Profile

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.