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

Shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $188.13.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial raised EastGroup Properties from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Raymond James set a $190.00 price target on shares of EastGroup Properties and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up from $181.00) on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, 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 target price for the company.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cohen & Steers Inc. grew its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 141.6% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 2,855,920 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $458,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673,663 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of EastGroup Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $116,756,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of EastGroup Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $100,579,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 210.6% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 707,732 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $113,584,000 after acquiring an additional 479,873 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in EastGroup Properties by 91.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 811,196 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $130,189,000 after acquiring an additional 387,134 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.14% of the company's stock.

EastGroup Properties Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EGP opened at $158.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.94. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $172.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $170.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. EastGroup Properties has a fifty-two week low of $137.67 and a fifty-two week high of $192.61.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.99. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 35.57% and a return on equity of 7.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. EastGroup Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 120.43%.

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.

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