AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) Price Target Cut to $191.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $193.00 to $191.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 10.78% from the stock’s current price.

AVB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered AvalonBay Communities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $172.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered AvalonBay Communities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Barclays lowered their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $217.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on AvalonBay Communities from $193.00 to $190.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $203.00 price target (down from $208.00) on shares of AvalonBay Communities in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $196.87.

AvalonBay Communities Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:AVB traded up $1.10 during trading on Thursday, reaching $172.41. 45,229 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,078,365. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. AvalonBay Communities has a 1-year low of $160.10 and a 1-year high of $213.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $171.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $177.03. The firm has a market cap of $23.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.75.

AvalonBay Communities (NYSE:AVB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $767.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $766.38 million. AvalonBay Communities had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 34.57%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that AvalonBay Communities will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AvalonBay Communities

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its holdings in AvalonBay Communities by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 160 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. BOKF NA purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in AvalonBay Communities in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 92.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AvalonBay Communities

AvalonBay Communities, Inc (NYSE: AVB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, develops, redevelops and manages multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on professionally managed apartment communities, offering a range of rental housing options and related resident services. As a REIT, AvalonBay’s core activities center on the acquisition and development of apartment assets and the ongoing operations and leasing of those communities.

AvalonBay’s operating activities include ground-up development, strategic redevelopment of existing properties, property and asset management, and on-site leasing and resident services.