Short Interest in W. P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) Declines By 13.5%

W. P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,630,000 shares, a drop of 13.5% from the November 30th total of 3,040,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,120,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

W. P. Carey Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WPC traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $54.60. The company had a trading volume of 1,023,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,279. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.92. The stock has a market cap of $11.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. W. P. Carey has a 12 month low of $53.09 and a 12 month high of $67.40.

W. P. Carey (NYSE:WPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.62). W. P. Carey had a net margin of 35.12% and a return on equity of 6.45%. The firm had revenue of $394.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that W. P. Carey will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

W. P. Carey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.45%. This is a positive change from W. P. Carey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. W. P. Carey's payout ratio is presently 138.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on WPC. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $59.00 price objective (up from $56.00) on shares of W. P. Carey in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of W. P. Carey in a research report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on W. P. Carey from $62.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $63.00 target price (up previously from $62.00) on shares of W. P. Carey in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on W. P. Carey from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W. P. Carey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W. P. Carey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in W. P. Carey by 1,510.0% in the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 483 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of W. P. Carey by 175.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 560 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of W. P. Carey in the third quarter worth $40,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in W. P. Carey by 35.9% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 651 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in W. P. Carey by 2,374.1% during the third quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 668 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the last quarter. 73.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W. P. Carey Company Profile

W. P. Carey ranks among the largest net lease REITs with a well-diversified portfolio of high-quality, operationally critical commercial real estate, which includes 1,424 net lease properties covering approximately 173 million square feet and a portfolio of 89 self-storage operating properties as of December 31, 2023.