Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.25.

A number of analysts have weighed in on EPRT shares. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Capital One Financial began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 95.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 74.5% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,834.4% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 215.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 827 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock opened at $31.66 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 5.59 and a quick ratio of 5.59. The company has a 50-day moving average of $31.61 and a 200 day moving average of $32.16. The firm has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.53, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.40. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a 1 year low of $23.58 and a 1 year high of $34.88.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 46.00% and a return on equity of 6.20%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Essential Properties Realty Trust will post 1.68 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, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.295 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 102.61%.

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.