Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. $EPRT Shares Sold by Citigroup Inc.

Citigroup Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) by 39.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 178,228 shares of the company’s stock after selling 118,332 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.09% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $5,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,131,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,488,000 after acquiring an additional 843,877 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,338,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,181,000 after purchasing an additional 276,803 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,155,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,517,000 after purchasing an additional 435,971 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 8.9% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,284,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,815,000 after purchasing an additional 267,226 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the second quarter worth about $84,188,000. Institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on EPRT shares. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a 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. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.78.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

Shares of EPRT opened at $34.54 on Wednesday. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.44 and a 12 month high of $34.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 6.37 and a quick ratio of 6.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.72. The company has a market cap of $7.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.95.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.31 dividend. This is a boost from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is 96.88%.

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.