EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) Price Target Raised to $194.00 at Robert W. Baird

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) had its price target lifted by Robert W. Baird from $192.00 to $194.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $174.00 to $194.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of 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. StockNews.com raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $186.00 target price on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $214.00 to $199.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.65.

EastGroup Properties Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:EGP opened at $180.02 on Wednesday. EastGroup Properties has a 52 week low of $155.10 and a 52 week high of $192.61. The company’s 50 day moving average is $167.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.24. 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 cap of $9.36 billion, a PE ratio of 38.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.00.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts predict that EastGroup Properties will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 120.43%.

Institutional Trading of EastGroup Properties

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EGP. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of EastGroup Properties in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Canton Hathaway LLC acquired a new stake in shares of EastGroup Properties in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake 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 valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 18.5% in 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. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 18.7% in 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. 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.