Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Position Cut by Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd.

Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. lowered its position in shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 52,500 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,200 shares during the period. Equity Residential accounts for 0.8% of Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd.’s holdings in Equity Residential were worth $3,767,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of EQR. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in Equity Residential by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Equity Residential by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $471,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 20.9% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust lifted its stake in Equity Residential by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,696 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised Equity Residential from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays dropped their price target on Equity Residential from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.25 price objective on Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.46.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Residential

In other Equity Residential news, CAO Ian Kaufman sold 642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $46,262.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,840,340.34. The trade was a 2.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 9,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $683,728.09. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,781 shares in the company, valued at $1,930,106.67. This represents a 26.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,763 shares of company stock worth $1,424,217 over the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equity Residential Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:EQR opened at $71.56 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $70.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $58.81 and a 12-month high of $78.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.93.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.26%.

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.