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

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on EastGroup Properties, with 13 buys and 5 holds among 18 firms. The average 12-month price target is $221.37, above the reported share price of $202.71.
• Institutional ownership is substantial at 92.14%, with BlackRock, Norges Bank, Deutsche Bank, Bank of America and Bank of New York Mellon among firms recently acquiring positions.
• EastGroup exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.40 versus a $1.31 consensus, while revenue rose 9% year over year. The REIT also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.75, equivalent to a 3.5% annualized yield.

Shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $221.37.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on EGP. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Monday, July 27th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $218.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird set a $221.00 target price on shares of EastGroup Properties in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $221.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EGP. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties in the second quarter worth $1,553,186,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of EastGroup Properties in the fourth quarter valued at about $281,054,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties during the 2nd quarter worth about $114,775,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties during the 2nd quarter worth about $94,505,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in EastGroup Properties in the 2nd quarter valued at about $93,282,000. 92.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

NYSE:EGP opened at $202.71 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The company has a 50-day moving average of $202.80 and a 200-day moving average of $201.17. EastGroup Properties has a 52 week low of $166.11 and a 52 week high of $226.71. The company has a market capitalization of $10.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.56, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.01.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $193.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $193.61 million. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 40.47% and a return on equity of 8.61%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. EastGroup Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.520-9.660 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that EastGroup Properties will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This is an increase from EastGroup Properties's previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. EastGroup Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.77%.

EastGroup Properties Company Profile

EastGroup Properties, Inc NYSE: EGP is a self-administered and self-managed equity real estate investment trust (REIT) that develops, acquires, owns and operates industrial properties. Its portfolio is primarily composed of distribution and warehouse facilities designed to support customers' logistics, manufacturing and regional fulfillment needs.

The company focuses on functional, well-located industrial properties in major Sun Belt markets, with an emphasis on infill locations near population centers, transportation networks and business districts.

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