Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Invests $20.87 Million in AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 94,884 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $20,872,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC owned approximately 0.07% of AvalonBay Communities as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities in the fourth quarter worth $66,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 312.5% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its stake in shares of AvalonBay Communities by 42.6% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 442 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $97,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AVB shares. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on AvalonBay Communities from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Mizuho upgraded AvalonBay Communities from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of AvalonBay Communities from $226.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of AvalonBay Communities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $236.00 to $223.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $237.47.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE AVB opened at $205.86 on Friday. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $180.40 and a 52 week high of $239.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.12, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.86. 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 fifty day moving average of $209.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $218.58.

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

AvalonBay Communities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from AvalonBay Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. AvalonBay Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.23%.

About AvalonBay Communities

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.