Janus Capital Management decreased its position in Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,828,432 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 113,249 shares during the period. Janus Capital Management owned 0.78% of Equity Residential worth $212,472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Separately, ING Groep raised its position in Equity Residential by 9.0% in the third quarter. ING Groep now owns 1,043,363 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $78,377,000 after buying an additional 86,150 shares in the last quarter.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) traded down 3.17% during trading on Thursday, hitting $75.79. The company had a trading volume of 2,732,023 shares. Equity Residential has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $82.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.61 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.54. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $79.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $76.68.

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. On average, analysts expect that Equity Residential will post $3.46 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 28th were given a $0.5525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 23rd. This represents a $2.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EQR shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Jefferies Group raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Sandler O’Neill lowered shares of Equity Residential from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank raised their price target on shares of Equity Residential from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. The stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.61.

In other news, Vice Chairman Gerald A. Spector sold 88,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.91, for a total value of $7,052,057.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 273,707 shares in the company, valued at $21,871,926.37. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alan W. George sold 17,971 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.00, for a total transaction of $1,473,622.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 72,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,981,244. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Equity Residential is a real estate investment trust (NYSE:EQR) focused on the acquisition, development and management of apartment properties in the United States growth markets. ERP Operating Limited Partnership (ERPOP) conducts the multifamily residential property business of Equity Residential. The Company is the general partner and owns an approximate 96.2% ownership interest in ERPOP. The remaining 3.8% interest is owned by limited partners. As of December 31, 2014, the Company, directly or indirectly through investments in title holding entities, owned all or a portion of 391 properties located in 12 states and the District of Columbia consisting of 109,225 apartment units. All of the Company’s property ownership, development and related business operations are conducted through ERPOP.

12 Month Chart for NYSE:EQR

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