Analysts Set EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Price Target at $187.40

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $186.60.

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $199.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

EastGroup Properties stock opened at $165.93 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $8.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $165.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.38. EastGroup Properties has a 12-month low of $137.67 and a 12-month high of $192.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $174.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.67 million. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 7.89%. EastGroup Properties’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.98 EPS. Equities analysts expect that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 122.54%.

Institutional Trading of EastGroup Properties

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,103 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,075,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in EastGroup Properties by 309.8% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 15,878 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,797,000 after buying an additional 12,003 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in EastGroup Properties by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 415,978 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $73,275,000 after buying an additional 38,168 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties during the 1st quarter valued at about $567,000. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties during the 1st quarter valued at about $219,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

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.