Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $64.43, but opened at $62.50. Equity LifeStyle Properties shares last traded at $62.69, with a volume of 193,143 shares trading hands.

The real estate investment trust reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $327.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.34 million. Equity LifeStyle Properties had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 23.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.59 EPS.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th were paid a $0.515 dividend. This is a positive change from Equity LifeStyle Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. Equity LifeStyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ELS shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Truist Financial raised shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.20.

Institutional Trading of Equity LifeStyle Properties

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ELS. Dupont Capital Management Corp grew its stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 33.8% in the first quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp now owns 145,004 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,672,000 after purchasing an additional 36,655 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 351.6% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,865 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 1,452 shares in the last quarter. LDR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties during the first quarter worth $3,053,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Equity LifeStyle Properties by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 136,068 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,073,000 after purchasing an additional 1,741 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Seven Post Investment Office LP grew its stake in Equity LifeStyle Properties by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Seven Post Investment Office LP now owns 190,185 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,685,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387 shares during the period. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equity LifeStyle Properties Trading Down 1.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.43, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $66.45 and a 200-day moving average of $67.62.

About Equity LifeStyle Properties

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of lifestyle-oriented properties consisting primarily of manufactured home, and recreational vehicle communities. It operates through the following segments: Property Operations and Home Sales and Rentals Operations.