Russell Investments Group Ltd. Decreases Position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) by 12.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 701,323 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 96,807 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.49% of AvalonBay Communities worth $131,491,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,494 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.7% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 10,723 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,842,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Toroso Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 0.4% in the third quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 26,102 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,483,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 2,498 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 92.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total transaction of $323,925.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,985.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Kevin P. O’shea sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.65, for a total transaction of $928,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,308 shares in the company, valued at $5,812,330.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Joanne M. Lockridge sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.10, for a total transaction of $323,925.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,907 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,985.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

AvalonBay Communities Trading Up 0.1 %

AVB stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $191.45. The company had a trading volume of 945,647 shares, compared to its average volume of 712,005. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The company has a market capitalization of $27.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $182.66 and a 200 day moving average of $178.64. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.45 and a 12 month high of $198.65.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($1.03). The company had revenue of $704.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $701.67 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 34.05%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.59 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $1.70 dividend. This is an increase from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.65. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AVB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $191.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $196.78.

About AvalonBay Communities

As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 299 apartment communities containing 90,669 apartment homes in 12 states and the District of Columbia, of which 18 communities were under development. The Company is an equity REIT in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring and managing apartment communities in leading metropolitan areas in New England, the New York/New Jersey Metro area, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Northern and Southern California, as well as in the Company's expansion regions of Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina, Southeast Florida, Dallas and Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado.