Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Lowers Stake in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI reduced its holdings in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 48.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,960 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 3,734 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $282,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Equity Residential by 607.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Equity Residential by 2,529.4% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. 92.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EQR opened at $73.74 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $70.74 and a 200 day moving average of $72.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $59.48 and a 12-month high of $78.83.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.66%. Equity Residential’s payout ratio is currently 99.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equity Residential news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $683,728.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,781 shares in the company, valued at $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EQR. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 target price on shares of Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.46.

About Equity Residential

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.