EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $192.00.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $172.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI upgraded EastGroup Properties from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $192.00 to $204.00 in a research report on Monday. BNP Paribas began coverage on EastGroup Properties in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on EastGroup Properties from $158.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Mizuho upgraded EastGroup Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $175.00 to $200.00 in a report on Thursday, September 5th.

EastGroup Properties Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE EGP opened at $190.24 on Tuesday. EastGroup Properties has a one year low of $154.75 and a one year high of $192.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.16 billion, a PE ratio of 41.27, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $184.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.45.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.91). EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 8.69% and a net margin of 37.16%. The business had revenue of $159.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that EastGroup Properties will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. This is a positive change from EastGroup Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. EastGroup Properties’s payout ratio is 121.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EGP. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in EastGroup Properties in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its position in EastGroup Properties by 10,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 210 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in EastGroup Properties in the 1st quarter worth approximately $42,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in EastGroup Properties by 1,938.5% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 265 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in EastGroup Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. 92.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EastGroup Properties Company Profile

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.