Essex Property Trust (NYSE:ESS) was upgraded from Hold to Buy at Keybanc today. The stock closed yesterday at $150.24 on volume of 302,000 shares, below average daily volume of 305,000.

Over the past year, Essex Property Trust has traded in a range of $136.38 to $161.53 and closed yesterday at $150.24, 10% above that low. The 200-day and 50-day moving averages have moved 0.03% higher and 0.14% higher over the past week, respectively.

Essex Property Trust, Inc. is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust company. The Company specializes in acquiring, developing and managing multifamily residential properties. Essex has ownership interests in residential properties and commercial properties located in California, Oregon and Washington.

There is potential upside of 8.8% for shares of Essex Property Trust based on a current price of $150.24 and an average consensus analyst price target of $163.40. The stock should hit resistance at its 200-day moving average (MA) of $150.38, as well as support at its 50-day MA of $143.97.

SmarTrend recommended that subscribers consider buying shares of Essex Property Trust on December 13th, 2012 as our proprietary SmarTrend analytics indicated a new Uptrend was in progress when shares hit $143.61. Since that recommendation, shares of Essex Property Trust have risen 4.6%. We continue to monitor ESS for any potential shift so investors can protect gains and will alert SmarTrend subscribers immediately.