EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $190.47.

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $186.00 to $180.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of EastGroup Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $174.00 to $194.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd.

EastGroup Properties Stock Performance

Shares of EGP traded down $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $175.17. The company had a trading volume of 68,108 shares, compared to its average volume of 452,357. The business has a fifty day moving average of $177.34 and a 200-day moving average of $174.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $9.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.67, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.99. EastGroup Properties has a 12 month low of $155.10 and a 12 month high of $192.61.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 earnings per share 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 7.89%. Equities analysts anticipate that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. EastGroup Properties's payout ratio is 120.43%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EGP. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in EastGroup Properties in the third quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 13,624 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,545,000 after acquiring an additional 3,574 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,061 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,451,000 after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in EastGroup Properties by 67.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,558,083 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $291,081,000 after acquiring an additional 629,827 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 36.8% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 1,674 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. 92.14% of the stock is owned by 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.