Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen
by Amy Steele · The Cerbat GemWall Street Zen cut shares of Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR – Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.
EQR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Evercore upped their price target on Equity Residential from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Equity Residential from $75.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Equity Residential from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group upped their target price on Equity Residential from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $78.50 target price on Equity Residential in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Residential has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.63.
Read Our Latest Research Report on EQR
Equity Residential Price Performance
Shares of NYSE EQR opened at $59.87 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.75. Equity Residential has a 52 week low of $58.38 and a 52 week high of $72.64.
Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.01). Equity Residential had a return on equity of 9.98% and a net margin of 36.20%.The business had revenue of $781.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $786.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equity Residential has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.940-0.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.020-4.140 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Equity Residential will post 3.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Activity
In other Equity Residential news, COO Michael L. Manelis sold 5,765 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total transaction of $375,474.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 46,131 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,004,512.03. This trade represents a 11.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Garechana sold 3,637 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.13, for a total value of $236,877.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,536.20. This trade represents a 16.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,058 shares of company stock valued at $655,078. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equity Residential
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EQR. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Equity Residential during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in Equity Residential during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its stake in Equity Residential by 69.2% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 440 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its stake in Equity Residential by 375.2% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 480 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Residential during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 92.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Equity Residential Company Profile
Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates rental apartment properties. Headquartered in Chicago, the company focuses on delivering professionally managed, market-rate apartment homes and related services to renters. Its operations cover a range of property types, including high-rise and mid-rise assets, with amenities and on-site management designed to support resident retention and occupancy.
The company’s core activities include property acquisitions, development and redevelopment, leasing, and day-to-day property management.