Russell Investments Group Ltd. Acquires 99,956 Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.6%, acquiring an additional 99,956 shares and now owning 1,881,822 shares worth approximately $61.4 million.
• Essential Properties Realty Trust reported $0.46 earnings per share for the most recent quarter, missing analysts' expectations, but its revenue of $129.11 million marked a 25.4% year-over-year increase.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, reflecting a 3.9% dividend yield, though its payout ratio stands at 101.69%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,881,822 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 99,956 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.95% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $61,423,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV increased 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 valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 18,355 shares of the company's stock worth $574,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.8% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,026 shares of the company's stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 2.9% during the first quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 27,331 shares of the company's stock valued at $892,000 after buying an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, VP A Joseph Peil sold 13,227 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.96, for a total value of $435,961.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 76,590 shares in the company, valued at $2,524,406.40. This trade represents a 14.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

EPRT traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.43. The company had a trading volume of 1,633,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,687,245. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $31.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.64. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.44 and a 12-month high of $34.88. The stock has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 25.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 5.67 and a current ratio of 5.67.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $129.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $131.72 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 44.48%. The company's revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 14th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. This is a positive change from Essential Properties Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Essential Properties Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on EPRT shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $36.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $35.06.

Essential Properties Realty Trust 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.