Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) COO Robert Jenkins Sells 22,000 Shares of Stock

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) COO Robert Jenkins sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.22, for a total value of $708,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 34,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,100,892.96. This represents a 39.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

EPRT stock traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $32.11. The stock had a trading volume of 1,792,832 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,050,806. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.95 and a 52-week high of $34.73. The company has a current ratio of 8.17, a quick ratio of 8.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.45. The company has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.88.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $161.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.65 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 43.51% and a return on equity of 6.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. Essential Properties Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.010-2.050 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on EPRT shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $36.25 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.11.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,803,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,812,000 after buying an additional 1,425,082 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 975,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,051,000 after buying an additional 126,372 shares during the period. Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 719,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,343,000 after buying an additional 157,600 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,930,360.7% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,737,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,829,000 after acquiring an additional 6,736,959 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 111.6% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 18,611,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $552,031,000 after acquiring an additional 9,816,042 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: EPRT) is a self-administered real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties subject to long-term, triple-net leases. The company’s portfolio primarily consists of small-box retail and industrial assets, including convenience stores, automotive service centers, quick-service restaurants, fitness centers and other necessity-based businesses. Under a triple-net lease structure, tenants assume responsibility for property taxes, insurance and most maintenance expenses, providing Essential Properties with predictable, stable cash flows.

Since its founding in April 2016 and its initial public offering later that year, Essential Properties has pursued a growth strategy focused on partnering with creditworthy tenants operating in densely populated trade areas.