Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA Takes $8.03 Million Position in W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

Key Points

• Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA opened a new position in W.P. Carey, buying 124,784 shares worth about $8.03 million in the fourth quarter.
• W.P. Carey reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $1.30 versus estimates of $0.61 and revenue of $454.5 million, while also raising its full-year guidance.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.93 per share, giving it an annualized yield of about 5.0%, though its payout ratio remains high at 158.97%.

Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 124,784 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $8,032,000. Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA owned 0.06% of W.P. Carey as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WPC. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 416.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,892,462 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $263,014,000 after buying an additional 3,139,266 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 1,183.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,130,402 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $76,381,000 after buying an additional 1,042,334 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 2,712.0% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 771,534 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $48,128,000 after buying an additional 744,097 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 331.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 861,430 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $58,207,000 after buying an additional 661,572 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 165.6% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 830,543 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $51,809,000 after buying an additional 517,855 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on WPC shares. Evercore set a $74.00 target price on shares of W.P. Carey in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.P. Carey from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.00.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

Shares of W.P. Carey stock opened at $74.10 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. W.P. Carey Inc. has a twelve month low of $59.34 and a twelve month high of $75.69.

W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.69. The company had revenue of $454.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $430.64 million. W.P. Carey had a net margin of 29.35% and a return on equity of 6.29%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. W.P. Carey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.160-5.260 EPS. Analysts forecast that W.P. Carey Inc. will post 5.02 EPS for the current year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from W.P. Carey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. W.P. Carey's dividend payout ratio is presently 158.97%.

Insider Activity at W.P. Carey

In other news, CAO Brian H. Zander sold 433 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $32,042.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,027,268. The trade was a 3.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.98% of the company's stock.

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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