Pensionfund Sabic Buys New Shares in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. $EPRT

Pensionfund Sabic purchased a new position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 27,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $816,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in EPRT. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 159.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 74,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,420,000 after buying an additional 45,561 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 21.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 22,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $726,000 after buying an additional 3,981 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 16.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,387,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,279,000 after acquiring an additional 195,057 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in the first quarter worth $2,350,000. Finally, Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 38.4% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after acquiring an additional 4,589 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

Shares of EPRT stock opened at $30.70 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.93. The company has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 23.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.95. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.44 and a twelve month high of $34.73. The company has a current ratio of 6.37, a quick ratio of 6.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 96.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EPRT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. UBS Group upped their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded Essential Properties Realty Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $35.00 to $37.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Robert Webb Salisbury sold 5,851 shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.88, for a total transaction of $186,529.88. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $264,922.80. The trade was a 41.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP A Joseph Peil sold 19,657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.10, for a total value of $630,989.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 76,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,456,452.50. This trade represents a 20.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: EPRT) is a self-administered real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial properties subject to long-term, triple-net leases. The company’s portfolio primarily consists of small-box retail and industrial assets, including convenience stores, automotive service centers, quick-service restaurants, fitness centers and other necessity-based businesses. Under a triple-net lease structure, tenants assume responsibility for property taxes, insurance and most maintenance expenses, providing Essential Properties with predictable, stable cash flows.

Since its founding in April 2016 and its initial public offering later that year, Essential Properties has pursued a growth strategy focused on partnering with creditworthy tenants operating in densely populated trade areas.