Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a report published on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $10.00 target price on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Empire State Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th.

Empire State Realty Trust Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of Empire State Realty Trust stock opened at $7.93 on Tuesday. Empire State Realty Trust has a 1-year low of $7.88 and a 1-year high of $11.62. The company has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of 28.34 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 3.72 and a quick ratio of 3.72. The business has a 50-day moving average of $8.90 and a 200-day moving average of $10.08.

Empire State Realty Trust (NYSE:ESRT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $155.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $192.62 million. Empire State Realty Trust had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 2.84%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Empire State Realty Trust will post 0.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Empire State Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.035 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Empire State Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Thomas P. Durels sold 12,500 shares of Empire State Realty Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.11, for a total value of $101,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $602,629.77. This trade represents a 14.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 30,122 shares of company stock valued at $242,761 over the last three months. 13.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Empire State Realty Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESRT. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Empire State Realty Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Empire State Realty Trust during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 819.7% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 4,295 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 3,828 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its stake in shares of Empire State Realty Trust by 3,139.1% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 4,470 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 4,332 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in Empire State Realty Trust during the fourth quarter worth $54,000. 67.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Empire State Realty Trust

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: ESRT) is a NYC-focused REIT that owns and operates a portfolio of modernized, amenitized, and well-located office, retail, and multifamily assets. The company is the recognized leader in energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality. ESRT’s flagship Empire State Building – the “World’s Most Famous Building” – includes its Observatory, Tripadvisor’s 2023 Travelers’ Choice Awards: Best of the Best the #1 attraction in the US for two consecutive years.