XTX Topco Ltd Invests $899,000 in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 4,088 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $899,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth about $1,499,050,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,488,975 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $547,500,000 after purchasing an additional 828,009 shares during the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its position in AvalonBay Communities by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 3,130,108 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $688,527,000 after buying an additional 639,402 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in AvalonBay Communities by 51.7% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 554,290 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $121,927,000 after buying an additional 188,906 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in AvalonBay Communities by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,449,566 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $318,861,000 after acquiring an additional 170,952 shares during the last quarter. 92.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVB opened at $200.34 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $211.73 and a 200 day moving average of $219.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $28.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $178.29 and a 52 week high of $239.29.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by ($0.03). AvalonBay Communities had a net margin of 37.13% and a return on equity of 9.15%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AvalonBay Communities, Inc. will post 11.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $1.75 per share. This is a boost from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Truist Financial upped their target price on AvalonBay Communities from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered AvalonBay Communities from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $220.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $237.47.

AvalonBay Communities Company Profile

AvalonBay Communities, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the development, acquisition, ownership, and operation of multifamily communities. It operates through the following segments: Same Store, Other Stabilized, and Development or Redevelopment. The Same Store segment refers to the operating communities that were owned and had stabilized occupancy.