Essential Properties announces upsized $254 mln equity offering; stock dips

Essential Properties Realty Trust's EPRT.N shares off 1.1% premarket to $31.40 after overnight follow-on priced

Princeton, New Jersey-based commercial net-lease real estate investment trust late Tues announced 8.2 mln shares for gross raise of $254.2 mln

Deal size boosted from 8 mln shares; offering price equates to $31, a 2.4% discount to last sale

Co entered into 18-mth forward sales agreements with jt bookrunners Wells Fargo and BofA Secs, whereby upon settlement of such agreements it plans to use net proceeds for general purposes, including potential investments

A forward sale structure enables the REIT to lock in funding at current prices but delays having to issue the shares and diluting earnings until it needs to pay for acquisitions

Co has ~187.7 mln shares outstanding for $6 bln market cap

Through Tues close, stock up 1.5% YTD and up ~25% over the past 12 months

15 of 18 analysts rate EPRT "strong buy" or "buy", rest rate "hold" and their median PT is $35, LSEG data shows