Hudson Bay Capital Management LP Grows Stock Position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. $EPRT

Hudson Bay Capital Management LP raised its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EPRT) by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 671,913 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 106,783 shares during the quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP owned 0.34% of Essential Properties Realty Trust worth $19,996,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 1,187,088 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,328,000 after purchasing an additional 25,349 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Essential Properties Realty Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $267,000. Cambria Investment Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 18,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 2,475 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Essential Properties Realty Trust by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,290,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,157,000 after buying an additional 651,782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new position in Essential Properties Realty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $631,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on EPRT shares. Mizuho raised their target price on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. UBS Group increased their price target on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Essential Properties Realty Trust from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 target price on shares of Essential Properties Realty Trust in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Properties Realty Trust currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.60.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Price Performance

EPRT opened at $32.74 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50-day moving average of $31.93 and a 200-day moving average of $30.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 6.37 and a current ratio of 6.37. Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.44 and a 1-year high of $34.73.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Essential Properties Realty Trust’s payout ratio is currently 96.88%.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

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.