Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) Shares Cross Above 50-Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA - Get Free Report) passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.46 and traded as high as $22.29. Easterly Government Properties shares last traded at $22.01, with a volume of 398,408 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on DEA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Easterly Government Properties from $27.50 to $22.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Easterly Government Properties in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.50 price target for the company. Compass Point reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $23.75 price objective (down previously from $37.50) on shares of Easterly Government Properties in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Easterly Government Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.69.

Easterly Government Properties Trading Down 1.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 4.90, a current ratio of 4.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock's 50 day moving average is $21.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.13. The company has a market capitalization of $988.25 million, a PE ratio of 52.41 and a beta of 0.94.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.73. Easterly Government Properties had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 1.30%. The firm had revenue of $78.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $80.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Saturday, May 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 8.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Easterly Government Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 171.43%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Easterly Government Properties

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in Easterly Government Properties by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 321,908 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,071 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 481,556 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,470,000 after purchasing an additional 25,172 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 21,435 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties in the 4th quarter worth $337,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 66.5% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 46,300 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 18,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.51% of the company's stock.

About Easterly Government Properties

Easterly Government Properties, Inc NYSE: DEA is based in Washington, DC, and focuses primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties that are leased to the U.S. Government. Easterly's experienced management team brings specialized insight into the strategy and needs of mission-critical U.S.

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