AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (AVB), based in Arlington, Virginia, is a real estate investment trust focused on developing, acquiring, owning, and operating multi-family apartment communities. With a market cap of $31.3 billion, AvalonBay operates in high-barrier-to-entry markets like the New York metro area, New England, Southern California, and more.
Companies valued at $10 billion or more are generally considered “large-cap” stocks, and AVB properties perfectly fit that description, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the real estate sector.
AVB currently trades 9.2% below its 52-week high of $236.26, touched on Nov. 27. AVB has plunged 5.8% over the last three months, compared to the Residential REIT ETF (HAUS), which has fallen 10% over the same time frame.
In the long term, AVB is up 16% on a YTD basis, and the shares have gained 14.5% over the past 52 weeks. In comparison, the HAUS has surged 10.6% in 2024 and 11.1% over the past year.
AVB has been trading above its 200-day moving averages since mid-April, but has come under its 50-day moving average recently.
Following its Q3 earnings release on Nov. 4, AvalonBay’s shares rose 3.6%, buoyed by a core FFO per share of $2.74, which beat the consensus estimate and marked a 3% year-over-year increase. The company also reported quarterly revenue of $734.3 million, exceeding expectations. Furthermore, AvalonBay raised its full-year core FFO per share guidance to a range of $10.99 to $11.09, indicating stronger-than-expected growth.
AVB Properties faces stiff competition from top residential REIT Equity Residential (EQR). AVB has surpassed EQR’s 13% returns over the past year and a 13.6% rise in 2024.
Analysts hold a reasonably positive outlook for AVB. The stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from 24 analysts in coverage, and it currently trades above its mean price target of $240.28 indicates an upswing of 10.6% from prevailing price levels.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here. More news from Barchart
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