Groupe la Francaise Cuts Stock Position in Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. $ELS

Groupe la Francaise lessened its stake in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) by 86.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,823 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 54,876 shares during the period. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in Equity Lifestyle Properties were worth $551,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELS. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 303.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 15,948,613 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $966,648,000 after acquiring an additional 11,999,874 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 253.7% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 3,147,048 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $191,025,000 after acquiring an additional 2,257,299 shares in the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. raised its position in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 10,614,040 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $643,331,000 after purchasing an additional 2,246,622 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in the 4th quarter worth about $125,352,000. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Equity Lifestyle Properties by 1,520.4% in the 2nd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,771,803 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $109,267,000 after purchasing an additional 1,662,458 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Odeon Capital Group set a $65.00 target price on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $68.00 price target on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $68.70.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Price Performance

Shares of ELS opened at $65.18 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.38. The firm has a market cap of $12.65 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.37 and a 1-year high of $69.00.

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by ($0.22). Equity Lifestyle Properties had a return on equity of 22.31% and a net margin of 25.92%.The firm had revenue of $397.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $383.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be given a $0.5425 dividend. This represents a $2.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. Equity Lifestyle Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.33%.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Company Profile

Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc (NYSE: ELS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in the acquisition, development, ownership and operation of manufactured home communities and recreational vehicle resorts. The company’s portfolio includes more than 450 properties across the United States and Canada, serving over 200,000 residents and visitors. ELS organizes its operations into two primary segments: manufactured housing communities, which provide long-term housing solutions, and upscale RV and seasonal resorts designed for leisure travelers and seasonal patrons.

In its manufactured home division, ELS offers home-site leases combined with community amenities such as landscaped common areas, clubhouses, swimming pools and organized resident events.