Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Sells 16,322 Shares of W.P. Carey Inc. $WPC

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lowered its stake in W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC) by 53.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 14,268 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 16,322 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in W.P. Carey were worth $918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W.P. Carey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of W.P. Carey during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 73.73% of the company’s stock.

W.P. Carey Price Performance

Shares of WPC stock opened at $72.89 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The business’s fifty day moving average is $71.53 and its 200 day moving average is $69.28. W.P. Carey Inc. has a twelve month low of $59.77 and a twelve month high of $75.69. The stock has a market cap of $16.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.15, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.77.

W.P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.69. W.P. Carey had a return on equity of 6.29% and a net margin of 29.35%.The business had revenue of $454.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $430.64 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. W.P. Carey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.160-5.260 EPS. Research analysts expect that W.P. Carey Inc. will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.P. Carey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. This is a positive change from W.P. Carey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. W.P. Carey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 158.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.P. Carey news, CAO Brian H. Zander sold 433 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $32,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,027,268. The trade was a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WPC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded W.P. Carey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Raymond James Financial upgraded W.P. Carey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup upped their target price on W.P. Carey from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on W.P. Carey from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on W.P. Carey from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.60.

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.