Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. $AVB

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 3,488 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $632,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AVB. Norges Bank bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth about $1,394,635,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 15,065.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,801,071 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $326,552,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,195 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 76.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,355,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $455,077,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,286 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,159,950 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $935,551,000 after purchasing an additional 944,129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 1,181.0% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 675,070 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $122,397,000 after purchasing an additional 622,370 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $206.00 to $203.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $203.00 price target (down from $208.00) on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Wolfe Research raised shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $209.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, June 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AvalonBay Communities currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $195.13.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 1.3%

AVB opened at $179.57 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $181.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.78. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.10 and a 12 month high of $209.86.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by ($0.47). AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 9.56% and a net margin of 37.21%.The business had revenue of $770.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $768.80 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.83 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.28 earnings per share for the current year.

AvalonBay Communities Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.78 per share. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. AvalonBay Communities’s payout ratio is currently 103.19%.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.