EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Monday.

Several other research firms have also commented on EGP. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $190.00 to $186.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $214.00 to $199.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $186.00 price target on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, EastGroup Properties has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.88.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EGP opened at $178.83 on Monday. EastGroup Properties has a fifty-two week low of $155.10 and a fifty-two week high of $192.61. The stock has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.46, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.49.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.99. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 8.27%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio is 120.43%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in EastGroup Properties by 47.7% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,458 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 538 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. 92.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About EastGroup Properties

EastGroup Properties, Inc (NYSE: EGP), a member of the S&P Mid-Cap 400 and Russell 1000 Indexes, is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust focused on the development, acquisition and operation of industrial properties in major Sunbelt markets throughout the United States with an emphasis in the states of Florida, Texas, Arizona, California and North Carolina.