EP Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $921,000 in W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 12,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $921,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WPC. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 153,462 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,429,000 after purchasing an additional 27,734 shares during the period. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 124.2% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 135,849 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,743,000 after buying an additional 75,253 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,638,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in W.P. Carey by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 488,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,231,000 after buying an additional 17,812 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in W.P. Carey by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 922,540 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $59,370,000 after buying an additional 71,463 shares in the last quarter. 73.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

W.P. Carey stock opened at $71.31 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.34, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.75. W.P. Carey Inc. has a 1 year low of $63.08 and a 1 year high of $77.22. The business has a 50-day moving average of $72.71 and a 200-day moving average of $72.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This is a positive change 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 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. W.P. Carey’s payout ratio is 128.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WPC shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a report on Friday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.P. Carey from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $79.38.

W.P. Carey Profile

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.