Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $70.19 and last traded at $69.96, with a volume of 2030816 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $69.83.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Equity Residential from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Nordea Equity Research upgraded Equity Residential to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Equity Residential from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Equity Residential from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.65.

Equity Residential Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The company has a 50 day moving average of $66.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.27. The company has a market capitalization of $26.21 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.74.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $779.85 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $781.79 million. Equity Residential had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 30.63%.The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. Equity Residential has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.980-1.020 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Equity Residential will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Residential Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 29th will be given a dividend of $0.7025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is presently 112.40%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EQR. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Equity Residential in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,201,674,000. Cohen & Steers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 227.7% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 7,405,502 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $466,869,000 after acquiring an additional 5,145,442 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equity Residential by 876.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,500,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $291,342,000 after purchasing an additional 4,039,752 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Equity Residential by 797.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,085,406 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $134,988,000 after buying an additional 1,852,970 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 353.5% during the 3rd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,002,892 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $129,647,000 after purchasing an additional 1,561,241 shares during the last quarter. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.

The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.