Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) Stock Passes Above 50-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA) passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $21.29 and traded as high as $23.04. Easterly Government Properties shares last traded at $22.74, with a volume of 473,285 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DEA has been the topic of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Easterly Government Properties in a report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $32.50 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Easterly Government Properties from $27.50 to $22.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Easterly Government Properties from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Compass Point restated a “neutral” rating and set a $23.75 price objective (down from $37.50) on shares of Easterly Government Properties in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.69.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 4.90 and a quick ratio of 4.90. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a PE ratio of 54.14 and a beta of 0.94.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73. The firm had revenue of $78.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $80.67 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.30% and a net margin of 5.86%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Saturday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a yield of 8.92%. Easterly Government Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 171.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Easterly Government Properties

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 814.7% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 604.0% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,878 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 5,043 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Easterly Government Properties during the fourth quarter worth $70,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Easterly Government Properties during the fourth quarter worth $87,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Easterly Government Properties during the fourth quarter worth $97,000. 86.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Easterly Government Properties

Easterly Government Properties, Inc (NYSE: DEA) is based in Washington, DC, and focuses primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties that are leased to the U.S. Government. Easterly’s experienced management team brings specialized insight into the strategy and needs of mission-critical U.S.