Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) in a research report issued on Monday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $13.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 23.05% from the company’s current price.

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

Easterly Government Properties Stock Performance

Shares of Easterly Government Properties stock opened at $10.57 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.22. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.69 and a beta of 0.73. Easterly Government Properties has a fifty-two week low of $10.18 and a fifty-two week high of $14.53.

Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $78.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.49 million. Easterly Government Properties had a return on equity of 1.34% and a net margin of 6.25%. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Easterly Government Properties will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Darrell W. Crate purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $10.91 per share, with a total value of $109,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 171,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,870,835.89. This represents a 6.19 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Easterly Government Properties

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new position in Easterly Government Properties in the 4th quarter valued at about $10,394,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 74.6% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,861,478 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $21,146,000 after purchasing an additional 795,058 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Easterly Government Properties by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,056,248 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $23,359,000 after purchasing an additional 673,270 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 276.8% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 838,081 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,521,000 after buying an additional 615,688 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Easterly Government Properties by 196.2% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 901,102 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $10,237,000 after buying an additional 596,924 shares in the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.