W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Brokerages

Shares of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $78.14.

A number of brokerages have commented on WPC. Bank of America upgraded W.P. Carey from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $73.00 to $83.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Weiss Ratings cut W.P. Carey from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Citigroup reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a report on Friday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on W.P. Carey in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.P. Carey

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new stake in W.P. Carey during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in W.P. Carey by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 449 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the 2nd quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

W.P. Carey Stock Down 0.7%

WPC stock opened at $64.06 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $69.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $71.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.59 billion, a PE ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.75. W.P. Carey has a 12 month low of $63.08 and a 12 month high of $77.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.22 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.9%. This is an increase from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. W.P. Carey’s dividend payout ratio is 129.69%.

W.P. Carey Company Profile

W.P. Carey Inc (NYSE: WPC) is a real estate investment trust that owns and manages a diversified portfolio of commercial properties. The company primarily invests in single-tenant, operationally critical properties that are leased to companies under long-term, net lease agreements. These arrangements generally require tenants to pay property taxes, insurance and maintenance costs, subject to the terms of each lease.

Its portfolio has historically included industrial, warehouse, retail, office and self-storage properties, with a focus on assets leased to established businesses across a range of industries.