Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Given New $40.00 Price Target at UBS Group

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) had its price objective hoisted by UBS Group from $39.00 to $40.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

EPRT has been the topic of several other research reports. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Wedbush began coverage on Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Monday, August 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $34.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $36.25 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Two research 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.37.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock opened at $32.86 on Thursday. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a twelve month low of $23.01 and a twelve month high of $34.51. The company has a current ratio of 5.59, a quick ratio of 5.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.37.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.16). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 46.00%. The firm had revenue of $117.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 27.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.87%.

Insider Transactions at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 27,817 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.33, for a total value of $899,323.61. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 446,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,421,637.08. This represents a 5.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EPRT. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,377,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $676,561,000 after buying an additional 1,060,079 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 29.2% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,646,742 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,631,000 after acquiring an additional 372,040 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 101.5% during the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 89,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,390,000 after acquiring an additional 45,151 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 244.3% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 427,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,958,000 after purchasing an additional 303,057 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 31.4% in the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 157,731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,205,000 after purchasing an additional 37,729 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.