Wells Fargo & Company MN Boosts Stock Position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT - Free Report) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 329,380 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,049 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.19% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $10,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Selective Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Selective Wealth Management Inc. now owns 21,709 shares of the company's stock valued at $673,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 50,884 shares of the company's stock worth $1,592,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 74.5% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,096 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association boosted its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 11,183 shares of the company's stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 730 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,935 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 1.3 %

Essential Properties Realty Trust stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $32.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,862,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,415,093. The stock has a market cap of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.27, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 5.36, a current ratio of 5.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.60 and a 1 year high of $34.88. The business has a fifty day moving average of $31.65 and a 200 day moving average of $32.10.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 45.15% and a return on equity of 6.12%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.66%. Essential Properties Realty Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on EPRT shares. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Barclays decreased their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. B. Riley cut Essential Properties Realty Trust from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $29.50 to $33.50 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.54, for a total transaction of $406,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 178,785 shares in the company, valued at $5,817,663.90. This represents a 6.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

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.