Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Price Target Cut to $32.00 by Analysts at Scotiabank

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) had its price target reduced by Scotiabank from $33.00 to $32.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays dropped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, B. Riley cut Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $29.50 to $33.50 in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Properties Realty Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.48.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

NYSE EPRT opened at $32.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.13 billion, a PE ratio of 28.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 5.36 and a quick ratio of 5.36. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 1-year low of $23.58 and a 1-year high of $34.88.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.12% and a net margin of 45.15%. On average, research analysts predict that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s payout ratio is presently 103.51%.

Insider Activity at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 12,500 shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.54, for a total transaction of $406,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 178,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,817,663.90. The trade was a 6.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EPRT. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 95.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 74.5% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,834.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 215.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 827 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

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.