W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eleven research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $74.20.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WPC. Barclays raised their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of W.P. Carey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of W.P. Carey from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th.

W.P. Carey Stock Performance

NYSE:WPC opened at $74.57 on Wednesday. W.P. Carey has a 1 year low of $61.09 and a 1 year high of $75.69. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.88. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $16.61 billion, a PE ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.76.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.69. W.P. Carey had a net margin of 29.35% and a return on equity of 6.29%. The business had revenue of $454.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $430.64 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.17 EPS. W.P. Carey’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. W.P. Carey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.160-5.260 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.P. Carey will post 5.02 EPS for the current year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. This is a positive change from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. W.P. Carey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 158.97%.

Insider Transactions at W.P. Carey

In other W.P. Carey news, CAO Brian H. Zander sold 433 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $32,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,027,268. This trade represents a 3.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of W.P. Carey

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WPC. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. 73.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About W.P. Carey

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.