Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes Position in W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 477,275 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $34,125,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.21% of W.P. Carey at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WPC. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 22.1% during 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 acquiring an additional 27,734 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in W.P. Carey by 124.2% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 135,849 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,743,000 after purchasing an additional 75,253 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in W.P. Carey in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,638,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in W.P. Carey by 3.8% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 488,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,231,000 after purchasing an additional 17,812 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 372.8% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 46,644 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,002,000 after purchasing an additional 36,779 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

W.P. Carey Stock Performance

NYSE:WPC opened at $71.59 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.63 and a 200-day moving average of $72.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. W.P. Carey Inc. has a twelve month low of $63.08 and a twelve month high of $77.22.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This is an increase from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. W.P. Carey’s payout ratio is 128.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WPC has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup restated a “market perform” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a report on Thursday, June 18th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.