Kestra Advisory Services LLC Purchases 66,228 Shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. $DEA

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Easterly Government Properties by 80% during the 1st quarter, now owning approximately 0.33% of the company valued at $1.58 million.
• The stock has seen recent analyst ratings changes, with Wall Street Zen downgrading it from a "hold" to a "sell" and Royal Bank of Canada reducing their price target from $27.50 to $22.00.
• After reporting earnings, Easterly Government Properties announced a cut in its dividend, now yielding 7.9% with an annual payout of $1.80.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA - Free Report) by 80.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 149,057 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 66,228 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC owned approximately 0.33% of Easterly Government Properties worth $1,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DEA. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,548 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,686 shares in the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management raised its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 20.0% during the first quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 12,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 10.1% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 27,217 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 2,501 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,601 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $166,000 after acquiring an additional 2,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 3.2% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 89,616 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $950,000 after acquiring an additional 2,798 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Easterly Government Properties from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Easterly Government Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased 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 report on Monday, June 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.15.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DEA traded up $0.41 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $23.07. The company had a trading volume of 293,842 shares, compared to its average volume of 585,641. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 3.75 and a quick ratio of 3.75. The company has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.32 and a beta of 0.96. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.33 and a 12-month high of $36.31. The company has a fifty day moving average of $22.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.15.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.74. The firm had revenue of $80.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.73 million. Easterly Government Properties had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 1.26%. The company's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.29 EPS. Easterly Government Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.980-3.030 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Easterly Government Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 439.02%.

Easterly Government Properties Profile

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.