Capital World Investors Purchases New Shares in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 229,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,194,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 1,834.4% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 215.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 827 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 275.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,456 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 1,802 shares during the last quarter. 96.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

Essential Properties Realty Trust stock opened at $31.84 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 5.36 and a current ratio of 5.36. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.30 and a fifty-two week high of $34.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $31.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.10. The company has a market capitalization of $5.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.93, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.08.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last announced its earnings results 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s payout ratio is currently 103.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EPRT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target 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. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. B. Riley downgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $29.50 to $33.50 in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Capital One Financial began coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Properties Realty Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other news, Director Stephen D. Sautel sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.99, for a total transaction of $959,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 218,785 shares in the company, valued at $6,998,932.15. This represents a 12.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.