Equity Residential (EQR), headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, is focused on acquiring, developing, and managing residential properties. Valued at $25.50 billion by market cap, the company owns or has investments in 299 properties consisting of 79,688 apartment units. It has a presence in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Seattle, San Francisco, and Southern California. It is also expanding its presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/ Ft. Worth, and Austin. The leading REIT is expected to announce its fiscal second-quarter earnings for 2024 after the market closes on Monday, Jul. 29.
Ahead of the event, analysts expect EQR to report an FFO of $0.96 per share on a diluted basis, up 2.1% from $0.94 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company beat or matched the consensus FFO estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing the forecast on another occasion. During the previous quarter, EQR’s same-store revenue increased 4.1% compared to the prior year quarter. It repurchased and retired 652,452 of its common shares.
For fiscal 2024, analysts expect EQR to report an FFO of $3.88, up 2.7% from $3.78 in fiscal 2023.
EQR stock has underperformed the S&P 500’s ($SPX) 18.2% gains on a YTD basis, with shares up 10.9% during this period. However, it outshined the Real Estate Vanguard ETF’s (VNQ) marginal losses over the same time frame.
On May 13, EQR shares fell more than 1% in pre-market trading after Evercore ISI downgraded it from Outperform to In Line with a price target of $70.
On Apr. 23, EQR reported its Q1 results. Its funds from operations were $364.9 million, or $0.93 per share, surpassing the consensus estimates of $0.91. The company’s net income was $293.80 million, or $0.77, and its revenue stood at $730.80 million, beating Wall Street estimates of $729.80 million. EQR expects FFO to be between $0.92 and $0.96 for the current quarter. Meanwhile, it forecasts its full-year FFO to be between $3.80 and $3.90. EQR shares closed up marginally on the day the results were released and have been on an uptrend since then.
Analysts’ consensus opinion on EQR stock is bullish, with a “Moderate Buy” rating overall. Out of 24 analysts covering the stock, nine advise a “Strong Buy” rating, one has a “Moderate Buy” rating, and 14 recommend a “Hold.” The average analyst price target for EQR is $69.45, indicating a 3.4% potential upside from the current levels.
On the date of publication, Dipanjan Banchur 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.
