Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,510,000 shares, a decrease of 8.5% from the October 15th total of 6,020,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,680,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Equity Residential Price Performance

NYSE EQR traded down $0.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $55.43. 2,366,822 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,917,179. The company has a market capitalization of $21.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Equity Residential has a 12-month low of $52.57 and a 12-month high of $69.45.

Equity Residential Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 26th were paid a dividend of $0.6625 per share. This represents a $2.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.78%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 25th. Equity Residential’s dividend payout ratio is currently 147.22%.

Insider Transactions at Equity Residential

In other news, Chairman David J. Neithercut sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.25, for a total transaction of $1,356,250.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 3,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $184,016. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equity Residential

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EQR. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 593.9% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 458 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 220.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 400 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Equity Residential by 229.8% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 554 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Equity Residential by 207.7% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 600 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. 84.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EQR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on Equity Residential from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 26th. Wedbush started coverage on Equity Residential in a report on Tuesday, October 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on Equity Residential in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Equity Residential from $71.00 to $57.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $65.68.

Equity Residential Company Profile

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft.