Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Given New $30.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup lowered its price target for Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36 to $30 while maintaining a “buy” rating, implying approximately 11.4% upside from the stock’s $26.93 price.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $32.96, despite several recent target reductions from other firms.
• EPRT’s latest quarterly results were mixed: revenue rose 15.5% year over year to $168.67 million and exceeded estimates, but earnings per share of $0.27 missed expectations of $0.33.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by equities researchers at Citigroup from $36.00 to $30.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Citigroup's target price suggests a potential upside of 11.40% from the stock's current price.

EPRT has been the topic of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $32.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Thursday, October 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $38.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.96.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of EPRT traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $26.93. The company had a trading volume of 439,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,068,685. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 52-week low of $24.62 and a 52-week high of $34.73. The company has a quick ratio of 4.94, a current ratio of 4.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $27.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.01. The firm has a market cap of $5.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.82.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.06). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 41.03% and a return on equity of 5.95%. The company had revenue of $168.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $158.17 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.96 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,339 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 79.3% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 713 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 21.1% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,740 shares of the company's stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 100.6% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,824 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company's stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company Profile

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: EPRT is an internally managed real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties. The company primarily leases these properties to middle-market businesses under long-term, net lease agreements, which generally require tenants to pay a substantial portion of the property's operating expenses, including taxes, insurance and maintenance.

EPRT's portfolio is diversified across businesses such as automotive services, medical services, restaurants, retail, early childhood education and other service-oriented industries.

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