Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. $DEA

Key Points

• Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. by 154.0%, owning a total of 114,472 shares valued at approximately $1.2 million as of the latest filing.
• Several hedge funds have also made significant investments in Easterly Government Properties, with a combined 86.51% of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.
• Analysts are mixed on the stock's outlook, with ratings ranging from "sell" to "hold" and a consensus target price of $27.15, although the company recently cut its dividend payout.

Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA - Free Report) by 154.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 114,472 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 69,397 shares during the quarter. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC owned about 0.25% of Easterly Government Properties worth $1,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on DEA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Easterly Government Properties from $27.50 to $22.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised Easterly Government Properties from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Easterly Government Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.15.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of DEA traded down $0.1450 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $22.1150. The company had a trading volume of 138,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 587,085. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a PE ratio of 53.91 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 3.75, a quick ratio of 3.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a one year low of $19.33 and a one year high of $36.31. The company's fifty day moving average price is $22.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.49.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.74. The firm had revenue of $80.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.73 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.26% and a net margin of 5.54%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. Easterly Government Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.980-3.030 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. Easterly Government Properties's payout ratio is presently 439.02%.

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.