W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) Hits New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) hit a new 52-week high on Monday, trading as high as $76.97 as investor interest pushed the stock above its prior close.
• Analysts have turned more constructive on the REIT, with recent upgrades and higher price targets from firms including Wolfe Research, Wells Fargo, and Barclays. MarketBeat’s consensus still shows an average Hold rating and a target price of $76.90.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.94 per share from $0.93, implying an annualized yield of about 4.9%. W.P. Carey also beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates in its latest report.

W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $76.97 and last traded at $76.3890, with a volume of 1138667 shares. The stock had previously closed at $76.71.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on WPC shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.P. Carey from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on W.P. Carey from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Wolfe Research raised W.P. Carey from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 8th. UBS Group increased their price target on W.P. Carey from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on W.P. Carey from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.P. Carey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $76.90.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $17.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.76. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $73.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.69. W.P. Carey had a net margin of 29.35% and a return on equity of 6.29%. The company had revenue of $454.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $430.64 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.17 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. W.P. Carey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.160-5.260 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.P. Carey Inc. will post 5.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.94 dividend. This is a boost from W.P. Carey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. W.P. Carey's dividend payout ratio is 160.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Brian H. Zander sold 433 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $32,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 13,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,027,268. This represents a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.P. Carey

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WPC. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,329,159 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $844,065,000 after purchasing an additional 119,817 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in W.P. Carey by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,795,604 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $307,913,000 after purchasing an additional 110,306 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in W.P. Carey by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,213,013 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $271,150,000 after purchasing an additional 441,526 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in W.P. Carey by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,904,767 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $251,311,000 after purchasing an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in W.P. Carey by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,348,132 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $227,539,000 after purchasing an additional 155,857 shares in the last quarter. 73.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About W.P. Carey

W. P. Carey Inc is a diversified net-lease real estate investment trust specializing in single-tenant commercial properties. The company structures sale-leaseback and build-to-suit transactions to provide long-term net lease financing across a variety of asset classes, including industrial facilities, office buildings, retail centers and self-storage facilities. By employing triple net leases, W. P. Carey transfers property operating expenses, taxes and maintenance responsibility to tenants, creating a stable, predictable income stream for investors.

Founded in 1973 by William Polk Carey, the firm has expanded organically and through strategic mergers and acquisitions.

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