Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eleven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $34.91.

EPRT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. B. Riley lowered shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $29.50 to $33.50 in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

Essential Properties Realty Trust stock traded up $0.03 during trading on Monday, hitting $31.94. The stock had a trading volume of 87,368 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,423,034. The company has a quick ratio of 5.36, a current ratio of 5.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock's 50 day moving average is $31.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.07. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 1 year low of $26.07 and a 1 year high of $34.88. The stock has a market cap of $6.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.08.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.01). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.12% and a net margin of 45.15%. The business had revenue of $129.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $124.88 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. Essential Properties Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 102.61%.

Insider Activity at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.54, for a total value of $406,750.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 178,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,817,663.90. This trade represents a 6.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EPRT. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.3% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,085 shares of the company's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Selective Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Selective Wealth Management Inc. now owns 21,709 shares of the company's stock worth $673,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 50,884 shares of the company's stock worth $1,592,000 after buying an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 74.5% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,096 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 18,355 shares of the company's stock worth $574,000 after acquiring an additional 581 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, 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.