EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) Upgraded at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has upgraded EPR Properties from an "underweight" to an "equal weight" rating, raising its target price from $54.00 to $56.00.
• The stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" with various analysts, while EPR Properties' shares opened at $55.23 on Thursday and have a market capitalization of $4.20 billion.
• Recent earnings for EPR Properties showed a slight miss on estimates, reporting $1.24 earnings per share against an expectation of $1.25.

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR - Free Report) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report issued on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $56.00 price target on the real estate investment trust's stock, up from their prior price target of $54.00.

EPR has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wall Street Zen cut EPR Properties from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut EPR Properties from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, August 4th. KeyCorp cut EPR Properties from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. UBS Group cut their target price on EPR Properties from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial increased their target price on EPR Properties from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.36.

EPR Properties Stock Down 2.1%

EPR stock traded down $1.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $57.07. The stock had a trading volume of 287,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 799,223. The firm has a market cap of $4.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50-day moving average of $55.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.80. EPR Properties has a 52-week low of $41.75 and a 52-week high of $61.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 7.77 and a quick ratio of 7.77.

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.25 by ($0.01). EPR Properties had a return on equity of 7.66% and a net margin of 25.28%.The firm had revenue of $150.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $176.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. EPR Properties's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. EPR Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.000-5.160 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that EPR Properties will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EPR Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. EPR Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 174.38%.

Insider Transactions at EPR Properties

In related news, EVP Gregory E. Zimmerman sold 7,500 shares of EPR Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.35, for a total transaction of $400,125.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 88,877 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,741,587.95. This trade represents a 7.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 22,500 shares of company stock worth $1,249,950. 2.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EPR Properties

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in EPR Properties by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 174,282 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $9,169,000 after buying an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in EPR Properties by 66.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 744 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. purchased a new position in shares of EPR Properties in the 1st quarter worth approximately $325,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of EPR Properties by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 12,642 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of EPR Properties by 19.9% during the 1st quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 14,408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 2,389 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.66% of the company's stock.

About EPR Properties

EPR Properties NYSE: EPR is the leading diversified experiential net lease real estate investment trust (REIT), specializing in select enduring experiential properties in the real estate industry. We focus on real estate venues that create value by facilitating out of home leisure and recreation experiences where consumers choose to spend their discretionary time and money.