Legal & General Group Plc Makes New Investment in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. $EPRT

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 1,321,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,459,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 82.0% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 664.4% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,382 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust by 273.6% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Essential Properties Realty Trust

In other Essential Properties Realty Trust news, COO Robert M. Jenkins sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.22, for a total transaction of $708,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 34,168 shares in the company, valued at $1,100,892.96. This trade represents a 39.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:EPRT opened at $30.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 8.17, a quick ratio of 8.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a PE ratio of 23.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.86. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.95 and a 1 year high of $34.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.53.

Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $161.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $156.65 million. Essential Properties Realty Trust had a return on equity of 6.34% and a net margin of 43.51%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. Essential Properties Realty Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.010-2.050 EPS. Analysts expect that Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. will post 1.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Properties Realty Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EPRT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $36.25 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Scotiabank raised shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $34.00 to $33.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.20.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Company Profile

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.