W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC Shares Purchased by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP increased its holdings in W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) by 67.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 25,031 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,079 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings in W.P. Carey were worth $1,701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.P. Carey by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 5,886 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 21,474 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,459,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc increased its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 7,572 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. raised its holdings in W.P. Carey by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. now owns 2,511 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $162,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, Brookwood Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in W.P. Carey by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Brookwood Investment Group LLC now owns 8,936 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $575,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

W.P. Carey Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE WPC opened at $76.25 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.99 billion, a PE ratio of 32.59, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.76. W.P. Carey Inc. has a twelve month low of $63.08 and a twelve month high of $77.12. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.06.

W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.69. W.P. Carey had a return on equity of 6.29% and a net margin of 29.35%.The firm had revenue of $454.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $430.64 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. W.P. Carey’s revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that W.P. Carey Inc. will post 5.06 earnings per share for the current year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. This is a boost from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. W.P. Carey’s payout ratio is currently 160.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on WPC. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.P. Carey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Brian H. Zander sold 433 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $32,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 13,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,027,268. This represents a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

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.