Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 78,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,996,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 31.4% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 5,305,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,762,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267,534 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 9.0% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 49,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,078,000 after acquiring an additional 4,105 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,133,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,510,000 after acquiring an additional 63,496 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 12.6% in the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 556,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,033,000 after acquiring an additional 62,169 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in the third quarter worth about $715,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 17,618 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.90, for a total value of $438,688.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 353,303 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,797,244.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 9,188 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.01, for a total value of $238,979.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 554,904 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,433,053.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 17,618 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.90, for a total transaction of $438,688.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 353,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,797,244.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 44,524 shares of company stock worth $1,113,438. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Up 0.6 %

EPRT stock opened at $24.91 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 5.01, a quick ratio of 5.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.49 and a 12 month high of $26.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.29.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.58%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s payout ratio is 91.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on EPRT. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $27.00 to $27.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $28.50 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $29.00 price target for the company. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price target (up previously from $27.50) on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $28.22.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company 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.