Naviter Wealth LLC Purchases 139 Shares of Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS)

Naviter Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 3.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $1,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Savant Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $230,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 49,277 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,218,000 after purchasing an additional 4,943 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Essex Property Trust by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 22,295 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,527,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank increased its position in Essex Property Trust by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 16,282 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,037,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its stake in Essex Property Trust by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,658 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,643,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Stock Up 0.3 %

Essex Property Trust stock opened at $302.69 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.44 billion, a PE ratio of 37.00, a PEG ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.86. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $203.85 and a 12-month high of $304.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $283.28 and its 200 day moving average is $261.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.85 by ($2.40). Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 9.14% and a net margin of 30.31%. The company had revenue of $442.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $433.26 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.77 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Essex Property Trust, Inc. will post 15.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on ESS shares. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Essex Property Trust from $295.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Essex Property Trust from $290.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Wedbush lifted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $264.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $261.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $276.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,425,519.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Angela L. Kleiman sold 3,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.27, for a total value of $1,051,860.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,895.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Keith R. Guericke sold 10,000 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.57, for a total value of $2,745,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,425,519.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Essex Property Trust Profile

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.