Truist Securities has reiterated a $273.00 price target on Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) in the wake of the company's fourth-quarter financial disclosure, though the firm’s stance on the stock’s rating is presented inconsistently within the reporting. InvestingPro data referenced in coverage notes that Essex trades slightly below its Fair Value, with the quoted market price at $252.57 implying roughly an 8% upside to Truist’s stated target.
For the fourth quarter of 2025, Essex reported normalized funds from operations (NFFO) of $3.98 per share. That result was a touch under Truist’s internal forecast of $4.00 per share and narrowly below the consensus estimate of $3.99 per share. The REIT’s valuation metrics at the time of the report included a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23 and a PEG ratio of 0.35, figures Truist describes as indicating potential value when set against expected growth.
Essex issued 2026 normalized FFO guidance in a range of $15.69 to $16.19 per share, with the midpoint of that range, $15.94, sitting below Truist’s projection of $16.08 and below the street consensus of $16.22. Company management said that, excluding headwinds tied to structured investments, the guidance midpoint would have been $16.23 per share.
The company provided forward operating metrics for 2026 that call for same-store revenue growth of 1.7% to 3.1% and same-store net operating income growth of 0.8% to 3.4%. Truist characterizes those ranges as broadly in line with expectations and comparable to Essex’s performance in 2025.
Essex’s market capitalization stands at $16.84 billion, and the REIT continues to distribute cash to investors via a regular dividend. The dividend yield reported is 4.07%, and management declared a quarterly cash dividend of $2.57 per common share. That dividend is payable on January 15, 2026, to shareholders of record as of January 2, 2026.
In its analyst commentary, Truist noted that while Essex may not appear as cheap as some other names in its coverage universe, the company’s fourth-quarter results and outlook compare favorably against other apartment REITs that have already reported for the period. The coverage also contains an apparent reporting inconsistency: one section states that Truist reiterated a Hold rating alongside the $273.00 price target, while another section records Truist as maintaining a Buy rating and lowering the same $273.00 target amid a reduced 2026 same-store revenue growth forecast. The source material presents both statements; the article does not attempt to reconcile them.
Other brokerages have taken different approaches. BMO Capital downgraded Essex from Outperform to Market Perform, citing operational challenges in California as part of its 2026 REIT outlook. Jefferies reduced its recommendation from Buy to Hold and lowered its price target to $282.00, explicitly pointing to concerns about the company’s exposure to Southern California markets.
These analyst moves come alongside broader corporate announcements included in the company round-up. General Mills disclosed the appointment of Joan Bottarini to its board of directors effective January 26, 2026; Bottarini currently serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Hyatt Hotels Corporation. General Mills also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share. While these developments do not involve Essex directly, they were included in the same corporate update and provide additional context for investor attention in the period.
Investors focused on apartment REITs and the residential real estate sector will likely weigh Essex’s slightly softer-than-expected 2026 midpoint guidance and the analyst reactions against the REIT’s dividend yield and valuation metrics. The company’s stated same-store growth ranges and the caveat regarding structured investment headwinds are central to interpreting near-term performance versus analyst forecasts.