Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) Shares Acquired by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,242 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,169 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $4,207,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 4.7% in the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 775 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Essex Property Trust by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,228 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Essex Property Trust by 5.4% during the second quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Quilter Plc lifted its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 0.6% during the second quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 8,698 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,368,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 7.4% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 781 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Essex Property Trust news, CAO Anne Morrison sold 2,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.79, for a total transaction of $809,325.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $730,627.59. This represents a 52.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Amal M. Johnson sold 2,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $735,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $775,500. This trade represents a 48.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 20,402 shares of company stock valued at $6,399,663. Insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $318.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $284.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Essex Property Trust from $269.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Essex Property Trust from $282.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.00.

Essex Property Trust Stock Down 1.5 %

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $302.73 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.37, a PEG ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $209.17 and a fifty-two week high of $317.73. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $297.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $282.79.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.88 by ($2.04). The firm had revenue of $450.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $445.88 million. Essex Property Trust had a net margin of 31.55% and a return on equity of 9.72%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.78 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $2.45 per share. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Essex Property Trust’s payout ratio is currently 114.49%.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast markets. Essex currently has ownership interests in 252 apartment communities comprising approximately 62,000 apartment homes with an additional property in active development.