Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DEA) by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 456,384 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 51,102 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.44% of Easterly Government Properties worth $6,198,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 2.7% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 31,873 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 842 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 27,221 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in Easterly Government Properties by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 31,221 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 860 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Easterly Government Properties by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,881 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 35.6% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,798 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 997 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

Shares of DEA stock opened at $12.18 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 4.01 and a quick ratio of 4.01. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $13.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.64 and a beta of 0.72. Easterly Government Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $10.94 and a 12 month high of $14.52.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $74.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $74.98 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.34% and a net margin of 6.25%. Easterly Government Properties’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Easterly Government Properties, Inc. will post 1.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Easterly Government Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Easterly Government Properties’s payout ratio is currently 588.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Easterly Government Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $13.00 to $15.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com raised Easterly Government Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Easterly Government Properties from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th.

Easterly Government Properties Company 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.