Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 92,700 Shares of W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its stake in shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) by 56.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 71,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 92,700 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in W.P. Carey were worth $4,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 1.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,329,159 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $844,065,000 after buying an additional 119,817 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,795,604 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $307,913,000 after acquiring an additional 110,306 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,213,013 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $271,150,000 after acquiring an additional 441,526 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in W.P. Carey by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,904,767 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $251,311,000 after acquiring an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in W.P. Carey by 4.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,348,132 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $227,539,000 after acquiring an additional 155,857 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

W.P. Carey Stock Down 0.5%

WPC stock opened at $71.79 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $73.44 and its 200 day moving average is $72.39. The stock has a market cap of $16.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. W.P. Carey Inc. has a 1-year low of $63.08 and a 1-year high of $77.22.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This is a positive change from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. W.P. Carey’s payout ratio is currently 128.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Evercore set a $77.00 price target on shares of W.P. Carey in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of W.P. Carey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $88.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded W.P. Carey from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $79.31.

W.P. Carey Company Profile

W. P. Carey Inc is a diversified net-lease real estate investment trust specializing in single-tenant commercial properties. The company structures sale-leaseback and build-to-suit transactions to provide long-term net lease financing across a variety of asset classes, including industrial facilities, office buildings, retail centers and self-storage facilities. By employing triple net leases, W. P. Carey transfers property operating expenses, taxes and maintenance responsibility to tenants, creating a stable, predictable income stream for investors.

Founded in 1973 by William Polk Carey, the firm has expanded organically and through strategic mergers and acquisitions.