Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 703 Shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 365,093 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 703 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in EastGroup Properties were worth $58,598,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 503.3% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 362 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 18.5% during the fourth 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. Quarry LP bought a new stake in EastGroup Properties during the third quarter valued at about $102,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 18.7% during the fourth 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. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P bought a new stake in EastGroup Properties during the third quarter valued at about $202,000. Institutional investors own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

NYSE:EGP opened at $179.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $9.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.00. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.10 and a 12 month high of $192.61. The business’s 50-day moving average is $167.22 and its 200 day moving average is $175.27.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.99. EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 35.57%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that EastGroup Properties, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 120.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on EGP. StockNews.com raised EastGroup Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $209.00 price target on shares of EastGroup Properties in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $186.00 price target on shares of EastGroup Properties in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $186.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Finally, KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.65.

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.