PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Acquires 6,333 Shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA) by 34.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,895 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 6,333 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Easterly Government Properties were worth $283,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DEA. State Street Corp increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,839,318 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $79,298,000 after purchasing an additional 66,663 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,552,691 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,671,000 after purchasing an additional 9,248 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,975,328 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $22,440,000 after purchasing an additional 66,071 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,941,886 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $22,060,000 after purchasing an additional 9,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 478.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 672,306 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,130,000 after purchasing an additional 556,148 shares in the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Easterly Government Properties news, CEO Darrell W. Crate bought 10,000 shares of Easterly Government Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $10.91 per share, for a total transaction of $109,100.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 171,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,870,835.89. This trade represents a 6.19 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DEA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Easterly Government Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. 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 for the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Easterly Government Properties from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Easterly Government Properties from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of DEA stock opened at $10.45 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.01 and a 200-day moving average of $12.14. The company has a quick ratio of 4.01, a current ratio of 4.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.18 and a 12-month high of $14.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.03 and a beta of 0.73.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Easterly Government Properties had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 1.34%. The company had revenue of $78.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Easterly Government Properties’s payout ratio is 557.89%.

Easterly Government Properties Profile

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.