California State Teachers Retirement System Trims Stock Holdings in Essex Property Trust, Inc. $ESS

California State Teachers Retirement System lowered its stake in Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS) by 3.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,424 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,989 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Essex Property Trust were worth $22,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ESS. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Essex Property Trust by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,873,698 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $488,601,000 after acquiring an additional 22,835 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,679,607 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $439,520,000 after purchasing an additional 301,349 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 9.5% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,157,617 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $309,848,000 after purchasing an additional 100,730 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Essex Property Trust by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 995,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $240,989,000 after purchasing an additional 57,173 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Essex Property Trust by 31.3% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 958,090 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $250,714,000 after buying an additional 228,165 shares in the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essex Property Trust Stock Performance

ESS opened at $284.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.27, a PEG ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $286.95 and a 200 day moving average of $266.20. Essex Property Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $238.46 and a fifty-two week high of $303.35.

Essex Property Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $2.59 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $10.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Essex Property Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 161.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essex Property Trust

In other news, Director Mary Kasaris sold 600 shares of Essex Property Trust stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.45, for a total value of $167,670.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $669,003.30. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Essex Property Trust News

Here are the key news stories impacting Essex Property Trust this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Essex raised the midpoint of its full-year 2026 core funds from operations (FFO) outlook by $0.20 and forecast third-quarter core FFO of $3.99. The higher outlook reflects resilient rental demand and better-than-expected property performance. Essex raises full-year core FFO midpoint
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter FFO exceeded analysts’ expectations as same-property net operating income and revenue increased. Northern California was the standout market, helping support the company’s raised 2026 view. ESS Q2 FFO beats estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Citizens JMP upgraded ESS from “market perform” to “outperform” and assigned a $330 price target, while RBC raised its target from $306 to $312 and maintained an “outperform” rating. The upgrades indicate improving analyst confidence after the earnings report. Essex upgraded at Citizens RBC raises Essex price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Management highlighted a regional divide: Northern California rent growth remains strong, but conditions are less uniform across Essex’s other markets. This creates some uncertainty around the pace and breadth of future growth. Essex Property Trust ups guidance amid regional divide

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Essex Property Trust in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $303.00 price objective on shares of Essex Property Trust in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Essex Property Trust from $306.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays lifted their target price on Essex Property Trust from $277.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Essex Property Trust from $293.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $304.69.

Essex Property Trust Profile

Essex Property Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that acquires, develops, owns and operates multifamily residential properties. The company focuses on market-rate apartment communities and delivers a full suite of property services including leasing, resident services, asset management, and capital improvement programs designed to preserve and enhance long?term property values.

Essex concentrates its portfolio in West Coast markets, with a significant presence in California and the Pacific Northwest.