Baron Wealth Management LLC Sells 141 Shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Baron Wealth Management LLC lessened its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,051 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 141 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mid-America Apartment Communities were worth $317,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Mid-America Apartment Communities in the third quarter worth $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 321 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.60% of the company’s stock.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Price Performance

MAA opened at $148.68 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $17.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $154.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.72. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $121.51 and a 12-month high of $167.39.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.18 by ($1.20). The business had revenue of $551.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $548.53 million. Mid-America Apartment Communities had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 23.84%. The company’s revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. Research analysts predict that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a $1.515 dividend. This is a boost from Mid-America Apartment Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Mid-America Apartment Communities’s payout ratio is currently 136.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp raised shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $169.00 to $165.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $164.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.00.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Profile

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year.