Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Reaches New 12-Month High at $29.63

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $29.63 and last traded at $29.62, with a volume of 167589 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on EPRT. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $25.00 to $28.50 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Friday, May 31st. They set a “buy” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $27.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.05. The company has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.80, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 7.61, a current ratio of 7.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.88%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.09, for a total transaction of $677,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 247,492 shares in the company, valued at $6,704,558.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.09, for a total transaction of $677,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 247,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,704,558.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 20,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.54, for a total transaction of $574,567.02. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 514,464 shares in the company, valued at $14,168,338.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 59,775 shares of company stock worth $1,641,734. 0.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Essential Properties Realty Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 409.2% in the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 241,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,435,000 after purchasing an additional 193,979 shares during the period. Hazelview Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 112.9% in the first quarter. Hazelview Securities Inc. now owns 867,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,731,000 after purchasing an additional 460,065 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 51.0% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 281,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,530,000 after purchasing an additional 94,970 shares during the period. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 1,048,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,794,000 after purchasing an additional 56,990 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,401,000. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.