Realty Income (NYSE:O) Hits New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

Realty Income Corporation (NYSE:O)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The company traded as high as $66.31 and last traded at $66.1650, with a volume of 418882 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $65.66.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. Realty Income’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 300.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

O has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Realty Income from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Realty Income from $64.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Realty Income from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Realty Income from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Realty Income from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.21.

Realty Income Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $59.95 and a 200 day moving average of $58.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.29, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Realty Income

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Realty Income by 51.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 175,075 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,696,000 after purchasing an additional 59,570 shares during the last quarter. CrossGen Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Realty Income in the fourth quarter valued at about $840,000. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Realty Income in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $198,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its holdings in Realty Income by 361.0% in the fourth quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 2,434 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 1,906 shares during the period. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in Realty Income by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 134,460 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,580,000 after buying an additional 7,632 shares during the period. 70.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Realty Income

Realty Income Corporation (NYSE: O) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, owns and manages commercial properties subject primarily to long-term net lease agreements. The company’s business model focuses on generating predictable, contractual rental income by leasing properties to tenants under agreements that typically place responsibility for taxes, insurance and maintenance on the tenant. Realty Income is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange and markets itself as a reliable income-oriented REIT.

Realty Income’s portfolio is concentrated in single-tenant, retail and service-oriented properties such as drugstores, convenience stores, dollar and discount retailers, restaurants, and other essential-service businesses.