Squarepoint Ops LLC Sells 82,071 Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Squarepoint Ops LLC lessened its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Free Report) by 84.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,288 shares of the company's stock after selling 82,071 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust were worth $478,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,834.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 439.4% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,451 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 275.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,456 shares of the company's stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,802 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 44.6% in the 4th quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 3,325 shares of the company's stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on EPRT. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Capital One Financial assumed coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $35.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank upped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. B. Riley downgraded Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the company from $29.50 to $33.50 in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.91.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:EPRT traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $32.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,193,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,450,522. The stock has a market cap of $6.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 5.36 and a current ratio of 5.36. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.75 and a 12-month high of $34.88.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.01). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.12% and a net margin of 45.15%. The firm had revenue of $129.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $124.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 24.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Properties Realty Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. Essential Properties Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.35%.

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.