Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $34.91.

EPRT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective (up from $35.00) on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Down 0.7%

EPRT opened at $32.41 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.13 and a 200-day moving average of $31.83. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a fifty-two week low of $26.75 and a fifty-two week high of $34.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 7.76 and a current ratio of 7.76.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $129.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $124.88 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 44.62% and a return on equity of 6.13%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s quarterly revenue was up 24.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 102.61%.

Insider Transactions at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In related news, VP A Joseph Peil sold 13,227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.96, for a total value of $435,961.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 76,590 shares in the company, valued at $2,524,406.40. This trade represents a 14.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EPRT. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after buying an additional 3,166 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,948,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,246,000 after buying an additional 469,610 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp bought a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $287,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 674,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,092,000 after buying an additional 70,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TCW Group Inc. bought a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $872,000. Institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company Profile

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc, a real estate company, acquires, owns, and manages single-tenant properties in the United States. The company leases its properties to middle-market companies, such as restaurants, car washes, automotive services, medical and dental services, convenience stores, equipment rental, entertainment, early childhood education, grocery, and health and fitness on a long-term basis.