Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) Upgraded at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on ESS. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $293.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Essex Property Trust from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $296.00 price target on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Essex Property Trust from $290.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust from $272.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $299.08.

Essex Property Trust Price Performance

ESS opened at $293.32 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.85 billion, a PE ratio of 32.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.64 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $285.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $264.95. Essex Property Trust has a 52-week low of $238.46 and a 52-week high of $303.35.

Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($2.31). The business had revenue of $484.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $479.89 million. Essex Property Trust had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 30.03%.During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.97 EPS. Essex Property Trust has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.920-4.040 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essex Property Trust will post 16.11 EPS for the current year.

Essex Property Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $2.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $10.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.40%.

Insider Activity at Essex Property Trust

In other news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $669,003.30. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ESS. Nemes Rush Group LLC purchased a new stake in Essex Property Trust in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in shares of Essex Property Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essex Property Trust in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Essex Property Trust by 523.1% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 162 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Essex Property Trust

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long‑term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.