Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.72 EPS

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) announced its earnings results on Monday. The real estate investment trust reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.72, Briefing.com reports. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 3.22%.The firm’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

NYSE:DEA opened at $24.33 on Monday. Easterly Government Properties has a fifty-two week low of $20.56 and a fifty-two week high of $25.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a current ratio of 4.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $24.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.36 and a beta of 0.97.

Easterly Government Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. Easterly Government Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 750.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Easterly Government Properties from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Easterly Government Properties from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.11.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Easterly Government Properties

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DEA. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 197.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 95,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 63,463 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 1,759.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,000,176 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $10,602,000 after acquiring an additional 946,381 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 12,846.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,487 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 10,406 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 714,042 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,569,000 after purchasing an additional 7,785 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 271.5% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 115,677 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,226,000 after buying an additional 84,536 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

About Easterly Government Properties

Easterly Government Properties, Inc is a real estate investment trust that specializes in the acquisition, development and management of commercial properties leased to U.S. government agencies. Structured as a triple-net lease REIT, the company focuses on single-tenant assets with long-term, credit-backed leases that transfer most property-level responsibilities—including taxes, insurance and maintenance—to its government tenants.

The firm’s portfolio encompasses a variety of facility types, including office buildings, training centers, laboratories and mission-critical installations used by federal agencies.