Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC Takes Position in W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

Key Points

• Beacon Pointe Advisors initiated a 66,884-share position in W.P. Carey worth approximately $4.8 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 73.73% of the REIT’s outstanding stock.
• W.P. Carey raised its quarterly dividend to $0.94 per share, equivalent to an annualized $3.76 payout and a 5.3% yield, although its payout ratio stands at 128.33%.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but improving: the stock has an overall “Hold” consensus with a $79.38 average price target, while shares recently traded at $70.53.

Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 66,884 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $4,782,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in W.P. Carey in the 2nd quarter worth $2,371,801,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,329,159 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $844,065,000 after purchasing an additional 119,817 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,795,604 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $307,913,000 after purchasing an additional 110,306 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,904,767 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $251,311,000 after purchasing an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 4.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,348,132 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $227,539,000 after buying an additional 155,857 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.73% of the company's stock.

W.P. Carey Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:WPC opened at $70.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $16.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.07, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company's 50 day moving average price is $72.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.56. W.P. Carey Inc. has a 52 week low of $63.08 and a 52 week high of $77.22.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. This is a boost from W.P. Carey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. W.P. Carey's payout ratio is 128.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WPC has been the subject of a number of research reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of W.P. Carey from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wolfe Research raised W.P. Carey from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on W.P. Carey from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded W.P. Carey from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the company from $73.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $79.38.

About W.P. Carey

W. P. Carey Inc is a diversified net-lease real estate investment trust specializing in single-tenant commercial properties. The company structures sale-leaseback and build-to-suit transactions to provide long-term net lease financing across a variety of asset classes, including industrial facilities, office buildings, retail centers and self-storage facilities. By employing triple net leases, W. P. Carey transfers property operating expenses, taxes and maintenance responsibility to tenants, creating a stable, predictable income stream for investors.

Founded in 1973 by William Polk Carey, the firm has expanded organically and through strategic mergers and acquisitions.

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