UPDATE: Goldman Sachs Initiates Coverage on Empire State Realty Trust with Neutral Rating, $14.50 PT on Mixed Factors

In a report published Monday, Goldman Sachs analyst Andrew Rosivach initiated coverage on

with a Neutral rating and $14.50 price target. In the report, Goldman Sachs noted, “We initiate coverage of Empire State Realty (ESRT) with a Neutral rating and a 12-month price target of $14.50 (8% total return including dividends). Our proprietary New York City employer share price index implies enough employment growth for ESRT to continue to lease up its Manhattan office portfolio, and the iconic observatory should provide predictable long term growth. However, its strong stock performance (up 5.6% from its IPO on October 1 versus 0.3% for REITs as a whole) has led to price discovery, with the highest AFFO multiple in our coverage universe.” Empire State Realty Trust closed on Friday at $13.51.