Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,850,000 shares, a decrease of 6.3% from the July 15th total of 12,640,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,450,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $31.25 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Mizuho lifted their price target on 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. Evercore ISI cut shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $32.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Properties Realty Trust currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.81.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

EPRT stock opened at $30.72 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.35. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 12 month low of $20.49 and a 12 month high of $31.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $28.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.92. The company has a quick ratio of 4.90, a current ratio of 4.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.13). Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.28% and a net margin of 48.12%. The company had revenue of $109.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.78%. This is a positive change from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.31%.

Insider Activity at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 20,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.54, for a total value of $574,567.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 514,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,168,338.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 12,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total transaction of $356,317.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 500,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,030,472.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 20,863 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.54, for a total transaction of $574,567.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 514,464 shares in the company, valued at $14,168,338.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,775 shares of company stock worth $964,484 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EPRT. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 409.2% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 241,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,435,000 after purchasing an additional 193,979 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,377,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $676,561,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,079 shares during the last quarter. Hazelview Securities Inc. boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 460,065 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 51.0% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 281,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,530,000 after buying an additional 94,970 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 1,048,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,794,000 after buying an additional 56,990 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

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.