Virtu Financial LLC Invests $309,000 in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA)

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 27,186 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DEA. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new position in Easterly Government Properties in the 3rd quarter valued at $142,000. Inceptionr LLC purchased a new position in shares of Easterly Government Properties in the 4th quarter worth about $122,000. Metis Global Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Easterly Government Properties in the 4th quarter worth about $126,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in Easterly Government Properties by 29.3% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 15,858 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 3,592 shares during the period. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in Easterly Government Properties by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 21,435 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 1,574 shares during the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on DEA. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Easterly Government Properties in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $13.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Easterly Government Properties from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com raised Easterly Government Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Easterly Government Properties from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

Shares of DEA stock opened at $10.57 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $10.94 and its 200 day moving average is $12.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.69 and a beta of 0.73. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $10.18 and a 12 month high of $14.53. The company has a current ratio of 4.01, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $78.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.49 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.34% and a net margin of 6.25%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Easterly Government Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.03%. Easterly Government Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 557.89%.

About Easterly Government Properties

Easterly Government Properties, Inc (NYSE: DEA) is based in Washington, DC, and focuses primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties that are leased to the U.S. Government. Easterly’s experienced management team brings specialized insight into the strategy and needs of mission-critical U.S.