Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 7,213 Shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) by 8.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 91,712 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,213 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.05% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $2,541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 409.2% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 241,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,435,000 after purchasing an additional 193,979 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,377,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $676,561,000 after buying an additional 1,060,079 shares during the period. Hazelview Securities Inc. grew its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 112.9% in the 1st quarter. Hazelview Securities Inc. now owns 867,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,731,000 after acquiring an additional 460,065 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 51.0% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 281,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,530,000 after acquiring an additional 94,970 shares during the period. Finally, Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 1,048,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,794,000 after acquiring an additional 56,990 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on EPRT shares. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $31.25 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 12,712 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total value of $356,317.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 500,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,030,472.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 12,712 shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total transaction of $356,317.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 500,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,030,472.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Peter M. Mavoides sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total value of $33,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 513,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,371,392. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,775 shares of company stock valued at $964,484. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Stock Performance

Shares of EPRT stock opened at $31.91 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.90, a quick ratio of 4.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.94, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.35. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.49 and a 12-month high of $32.04. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.30.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $109.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $102.99 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a net margin of 48.12% and a return on equity of 6.28%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.31%.

Essential Properties Realty Trust 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.