Easterly Government Properties, Inc. $DEA Shares Purchased by Graham Capital Management L.P.

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 55.3%, owning approximately 0.44% of the company, valued at over $2 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Vanguard Group and Balyasny Asset Management, have also adjusted their holdings in Easterly Government Properties, indicating significant institutional interest.
• Easterly Government Properties has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, reflecting a 7.9% yield, despite reporting a high dividend payout ratio of 439.02%.

Graham Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA - Free Report) by 55.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 196,176 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 69,869 shares during the quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. owned about 0.44% of Easterly Government Properties worth $2,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 1.4% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 60,740 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $644,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the period. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 14.2% during the first quarter. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,548 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 1,686 shares during the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management increased its position in Easterly Government Properties by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 12,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Easterly Government Properties by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 27,217 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $288,000 after acquiring an additional 2,501 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,601 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 2,637 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.51% of the company's stock.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

Shares of DEA stock traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $23.16. 743,733 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 555,335. 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's 50 day moving average is $22.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.07. The company has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.48 and a beta of 0.96. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $19.33 and a 1 year high of $36.31.

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 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74. The firm had revenue of $80.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.73 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.26% and a net margin of 5.54%.Easterly Government Properties's quarterly revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.29 earnings per share. Easterly Government Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.980-3.030 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Easterly Government Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised Easterly Government Properties from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Easterly Government Properties from $27.50 to $22.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Easterly Government Properties presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.15.

Easterly Government Properties Company 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.