Public Sector Pension Investment Board Boosts Stock Position in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. $DEA

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. by 27.2% during the first quarter, owning approximately $3.34 million worth of shares.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Easterly's stock, with BMO Capital Markets upgrading it to a "hold" rating while Royal Bank of Canada lowered its price target, indicating differing outlooks on the company's performance.
• Easterly Government Properties recently declared a $0.45 quarterly dividend, resulting in an annual yield of 8.2%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 439.02%.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA - Free Report) by 27.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 314,854 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 67,373 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.70% of Easterly Government Properties worth $3,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DEA. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 814.7% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 2,770 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 604.0% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,878 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 5,043 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Easterly Government Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $70,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Easterly Government Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Easterly Government Properties during the 1st quarter worth approximately $109,000. Institutional investors own 86.51% of the company's stock.

Easterly Government Properties Price Performance

DEA traded up $0.51 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.52. 506,109 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 588,133. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 3.75 and a current ratio of 3.75. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.33 and a 12-month high of $36.31. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.44. The company has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.93 and a beta of 0.94.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74. Easterly Government Properties had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 1.26%. The business had revenue of $80.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.73 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. The company's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Easterly Government Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.980-3.030 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. Easterly Government Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 439.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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