Community Healthcare Trust (NYSE:CHCT) Stock Price Crosses Below Fifty Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• CHCT shares fell below their 50-day moving average, trading as low as $13.43 versus the $14.85 average; the stock last traded near $13.67.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $18.50, although Piper Sandler recently cut its target from $20 to $17.
• The REIT missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while its quarterly dividend was reduced to $0.33 per share, resulting in a 9.7% yield and a payout ratio above 197%; company insiders recently bought shares.

Community Healthcare Trust Incorporated (NYSE:CHCT - Get Free Report) shares crossed below its 50 day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $14.85 and traded as low as $13.43. Community Healthcare Trust shares last traded at $13.6650, with a volume of 411,347 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Community Healthcare Trust from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Community Healthcare Trust in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Community Healthcare Trust from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Huntington began coverage on shares of Community Healthcare Trust in a research report on Friday, July 17th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.50.

Community Healthcare Trust Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.55. The company has a market capitalization of $391.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40 and a beta of 0.68.

Community Healthcare Trust (NYSE:CHCT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $30.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.77 million. Community Healthcare Trust had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 16.81%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Community Healthcare Trust Incorporated will post 1.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Community Healthcare Trust Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a negative change from Community Healthcare Trust's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.7%. Community Healthcare Trust's payout ratio is 197.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Community Healthcare Trust

In related news, CEO David H. Dupuy bought 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $15.13 per share, with a total value of $151,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 557,262 shares in the company, valued at $8,431,374.06. The trade was a 1.83% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Z. Hensley purchased 8,000 shares of Community Healthcare Trust stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.21 per share, with a total value of $121,680.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 103,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,577,307.42. This trade represents a 8.36% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Community Healthcare Trust

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Community Healthcare Trust during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Community Healthcare Trust in the second quarter worth about $51,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Community Healthcare Trust in the second quarter worth about $58,000. Odyssean LLC boosted its stake in Community Healthcare Trust by 18.1% in the second quarter. Odyssean LLC now owns 31,238 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 4,779 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Community Healthcare Trust by 2.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 389,811 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $6,194,000 after acquiring an additional 7,975 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.84% of the company's stock.

About Community Healthcare Trust

Community Healthcare Trust Incorporated is a real estate investment trust focused on owning and operating healthcare-related properties. The company primarily invests in facilities that provide outpatient healthcare services, including medical office buildings, physician clinics, specialty facilities, behavioral health properties, ambulatory surgery centers and other healthcare-focused real estate.

Community Healthcare Trust generally targets properties located in non-urban and underserved communities across the United States.

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