TCW Group Inc. Acquires Shares of 27,865 Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

TCW Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 27,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $872,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 95.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 74.5% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 468 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 215.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $79,000. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 58.6% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 1,189 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:EPRT opened at $32.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 5.36 and a quick ratio of 5.36. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a one year low of $23.58 and a one year high of $34.88. The company has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.13, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.40.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.14. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 45.15% and a return on equity of 6.12%. Analysts anticipate that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Capital One Financial began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.55.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Profile

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.