EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) Short Interest Down 13.5% in February

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) saw a large decline in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,370,000 shares, a decline of 13.5% from the January 31st total of 2,740,000 shares. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 591,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of EPR Properties in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on EPR Properties from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on EPR Properties in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.50.

EPR Properties Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE EPR opened at $53.37 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $47.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.85. EPR Properties has a 12 month low of $39.65 and a 12 month high of $54.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.10 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a current ratio of 7.81, a quick ratio of 7.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.56. EPR Properties had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 28.87%. The company had revenue of $149.12 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.25 million. On average, analysts expect that EPR Properties will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

EPR Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This is a positive change from EPR Properties’s previous monthly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.63%. EPR Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 213.75%.

Insider Transactions at EPR Properties

In other news, SVP Gwendolyn Mary Johnson sold 3,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.02, for a total transaction of $210,678.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,216 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $443,828.32. The trade was a 32.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EPR Properties

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EPR. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of EPR Properties during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of EPR Properties during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in EPR Properties by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in EPR Properties by 54.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,296 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in EPR Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Institutional investors own 74.66% of the company’s stock.

EPR Properties Company Profile

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) is the leading diversified experiential net lease real estate investment trust (REIT), specializing in select enduring experiential properties in the real estate industry. We focus on real estate venues that create value by facilitating out of home leisure and recreation experiences where consumers choose to spend their discretionary time and money.