Invesco Ltd. Increases Stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Free Report) by 33.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,651,728 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,178,284 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 2.65% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $145,506,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in 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 period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,834.4% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 215.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,211 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 275.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,456 shares of the company's stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,802 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.54, for a total value of $406,750.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 178,785 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,817,663.90. This trade represents a 6.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EPRT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Capital One Financial began coverage on Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, B. Riley cut shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $29.50 to $33.50 in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.91.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:EPRT traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $32.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,358,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,410,149. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 5.36 and a current ratio of 5.36. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.82 and a 1 year high of $34.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.23, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.08.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.12% and a net margin of 45.15%. Research analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. Essential Properties Realty Trust's payout ratio is currently 103.51%.

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.