Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday. Approximately 7,111,746 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 235% from the average daily volume of 2,125,597 shares. The stock last traded at $26.5950 and had previously closed at $26.85.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EPRT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $37.00 price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.96.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.47. The firm has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 4.94 and a current ratio of 4.94.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $168.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $158.17 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 41.03% and a return on equity of 5.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.48 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 104.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Properties Realty Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EPRT. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 47.8% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the second quarter worth approximately $41,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 79.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 21.1% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 100.6% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,824 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares in the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company Profile

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE:EPRT) is an internally managed real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties. The company primarily leases these properties to middle-market businesses under long-term, net lease agreements, which generally require tenants to pay a substantial portion of the property’s operating expenses, including taxes, insurance and maintenance.

EPRT’s portfolio is diversified across businesses such as automotive services, medical services, restaurants, retail, early childhood education and other service-oriented industries.