Cibc World Markets Corp Buys New Stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 16,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $514,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of EPRT. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the third quarter valued at $69,473,000. Adelante Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 3,964.9% in the third quarter. Adelante Capital Management LLC now owns 1,111,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,084,287 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 434.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,086,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,105,000 after acquiring an additional 883,053 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $21,438,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 33.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,503,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,491,000 after acquiring an additional 621,445 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In related news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.54, for a total transaction of $406,750.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 178,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,817,663.90. This trade represents a 6.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on EPRT. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. B. Riley downgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $29.50 to $33.50 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Capital One Financial assumed coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Properties Realty Trust presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.91.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of EPRT opened at $31.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 5.36 and a quick ratio of 5.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.39. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.72 and a 1-year high of $34.88. The stock has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.36.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 45.15% and a return on equity of 6.12%. Equities analysts forecast that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.51%.

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.