W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 2,091,603 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 58% from the previous session’s volume of 1,320,854 shares.The stock last traded at $71.36 and had previously closed at $74.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WPC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore set a $74.00 price target on W.P. Carey in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on W.P. Carey from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of W.P. Carey in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of W.P. Carey from $79.00 to $74.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of W.P. Carey from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.00.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $67.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.27. The company has a market cap of $15.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.84, a P/E/G ratio of 6.33 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14.

W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $444.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $433.28 million. W.P. Carey had a net margin of 27.17% and a return on equity of 5.67%. The company’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. W.P. Carey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.130-5.230 EPS. On average, analysts predict that W.P. Carey Inc. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.92 dividend. This is a boost from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. W.P. Carey’s payout ratio is 174.41%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WPC. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 416.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,892,462 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $263,014,000 after buying an additional 3,139,266 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.P. Carey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $184,035,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in W.P. Carey by 31,629.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,163,285 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $139,229,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,467 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of W.P. Carey by 1,183.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,130,402 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $76,381,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of W.P. Carey by 2,712.0% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 771,534 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,128,000 after purchasing an additional 744,097 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

About W.P. Carey

W. P. Carey Inc is a diversified net-lease real estate investment trust specializing in single-tenant commercial properties. The company structures sale-leaseback and build-to-suit transactions to provide long-term net lease financing across a variety of asset classes, including industrial facilities, office buildings, retail centers and self-storage facilities. By employing triple net leases, W. P. Carey transfers property operating expenses, taxes and maintenance responsibility to tenants, creating a stable, predictable income stream for investors.

Founded in 1973 by William Polk Carey, the firm has expanded organically and through strategic mergers and acquisitions.