EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) Increases Dividend to $0.30 Per Share

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR - Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Wednesday, February 26th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.295 per share by the real estate investment trust on Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from EPR Properties's previous monthly dividend of $0.29.

EPR Properties has raised its dividend by an average of 23.5% annually over the last three years. EPR Properties has a payout ratio of 121.3% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Research analysts expect EPR Properties to earn $4.76 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.42 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 71.8%.

EPR Properties Price Performance

NYSE EPR traded up $0.69 during trading on Monday, reaching $53.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,001,761 shares, compared to its average volume of 682,513. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.07 billion, a PE ratio of 23.27 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 7.81 and a quick ratio of 7.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $47.05 and a 200 day moving average of $46.75. EPR Properties has a one year low of $39.65 and a one year high of $54.25.

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $149.12 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.25 million. EPR Properties had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 28.87%. Analysts expect that EPR Properties will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on EPR shares. UBS Group started coverage on EPR Properties in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on EPR Properties from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of EPR Properties in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $48.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other EPR Properties news, SVP Gwendolyn Mary Johnson sold 3,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.02, for a total value of $210,678.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,828.32. This trade represents a 32.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About EPR Properties

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.