Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on EPRT. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $36.60.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock opened at $30.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.12, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $32.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.97. The company has a quick ratio of 6.37, a current ratio of 6.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a twelve month low of $27.44 and a twelve month high of $34.73.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Robert Webb Salisbury sold 5,851 shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.88, for a total value of $186,529.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 8,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,922.80. The trade was a 41.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP A Joseph Peil sold 19,657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.10, for a total value of $630,989.70. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 76,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,456,452.50. This represents a 20.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 111.6% in the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 18,611,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $552,031,000 after acquiring an additional 9,816,042 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,131,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,488,000 after purchasing an additional 843,877 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,844,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,670,000 after purchasing an additional 421,364 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,338,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,181,000 after purchasing an additional 276,803 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,930,360.7% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,737,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,829,000 after purchasing an additional 6,736,959 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company Profile

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: EPRT) is a self-administered real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties subject to long-term, triple-net leases. The company’s portfolio primarily consists of small-box retail and industrial assets, including convenience stores, automotive service centers, quick-service restaurants, fitness centers and other necessity-based businesses. Under a triple-net lease structure, tenants assume responsibility for property taxes, insurance and most maintenance expenses, providing Essential Properties with predictable, stable cash flows.

Since its founding in April 2016 and its initial public offering later that year, Essential Properties has pursued a growth strategy focused on partnering with creditworthy tenants operating in densely populated trade areas.