W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $78.14

Shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $78.14.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of W.P. Carey in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $76.00 to $68.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Citigroup reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.P. Carey

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Miller Global Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the third quarter valued at $49,000. CX Institutional grew its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 21.3% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,961 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 449 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 72.0% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,351 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $152,000 after buying an additional 984 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 8.1% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 46,736 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,342,000 after acquiring an additional 3,493 shares during the last quarter. 73.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

W.P. Carey stock opened at $64.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.22. W.P. Carey has a 52 week low of $63.08 and a 52 week high of $77.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $69.93 and a 200-day moving average of $71.66.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.9%. This is an increase from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. W.P. Carey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 129.69%.

About W.P. Carey

W.P. Carey Inc (NYSE: WPC) is a real estate investment trust that owns and manages a diversified portfolio of commercial properties. The company primarily invests in single-tenant, operationally critical properties that are leased to companies under long-term, net lease agreements. These arrangements generally require tenants to pay property taxes, insurance and maintenance costs, subject to the terms of each lease.

Its portfolio has historically included industrial, warehouse, retail, office and self-storage properties, with a focus on assets leased to established businesses across a range of industries.