UBS Group AG Sells 120,800 Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. $EPRT

Key Points

• UBS Group AG cut its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 120,800 shares and leaving it with 406,353 shares valued at about $12.1 million.
• Recent analyst sentiment remains mostly positive: several firms raised price targets, and the stock currently carries a consensus Buy rating with an average target price of $36.55.
• The company posted quarterly EPS of $0.28, missing estimates by $0.05, while revenue came in above expectations at $158.8 million and rose 22.8% year over year.

UBS Group AG decreased its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Free Report) by 22.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 406,353 shares of the company's stock after selling 120,800 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned about 0.21% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $12,052,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 975,355 shares of the company's stock worth $29,051,000 after purchasing an additional 126,372 shares during the period. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 40.7% during the fourth quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 149,105 shares of the company's stock worth $4,422,000 after purchasing an additional 43,100 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 9,709 shares of the company's stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 2,115 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 172,733 shares of the company's stock worth $5,123,000 after purchasing an additional 13,544 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 146.9% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,131 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EPRT. Truist Financial upped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen cut Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 4th. UBS Group upped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised Essential Properties Realty Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $35.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, VP A Joseph Peil sold 19,657 shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.10, for a total transaction of $630,989.70. Following the sale, the vice president owned 76,525 shares in the company, valued at $2,456,452.50. The trade was a 20.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Robert Webb Salisbury sold 5,851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.88, for a total transaction of $186,529.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 8,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $264,922.80. This represents a 41.32% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of EPRT stock opened at $30.21 on Friday. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.95 and a 12 month high of $34.73. The firm has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a PE ratio of 23.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $31.90 and a 200-day moving average of $31.29. The company has a quick ratio of 5.12, a current ratio of 5.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.05). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.30% and a net margin of 43.46%.The business had revenue of $158.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.87 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Essential Properties Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.000-2.050 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.96 EPS for the current year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Essential Properties Realty Trust's payout ratio is 97.64%.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc NYSE: EPRT is a self-administered real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties subject to long-term, triple-net leases. The company’s portfolio primarily consists of small-box retail and industrial assets, including convenience stores, automotive service centers, quick-service restaurants, fitness centers and other necessity-based businesses. Under a triple-net lease structure, tenants assume responsibility for property taxes, insurance and most maintenance expenses, providing Essential Properties with predictable, stable cash flows.

Since its founding in April 2016 and its initial public offering later that year, Essential Properties has pursued a growth strategy focused on partnering with creditworthy tenants operating in densely populated trade areas.

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