EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,750,000 shares, a decline of 16.3% from the March 15th total of 2,090,000 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 498,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

EastGroup Properties Stock Performance

NYSE EGP traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $163.18. The company had a trading volume of 446,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 367,462. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $170.63. EastGroup Properties has a fifty-two week low of $137.67 and a fifty-two week high of $192.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $8.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.94.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $174.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.67 million. EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 35.57%. Equities analysts forecast that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. EastGroup Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 122.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EGP. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in EastGroup Properties by 337.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 49,097 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $8,728,000 after acquiring an additional 37,863 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 452,429 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $72,610,000 after purchasing an additional 23,626 shares during the period. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of EastGroup Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,871,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 72,392 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $11,667,000 after buying an additional 4,176 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James set a $190.00 price target on shares of EastGroup Properties and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Truist Financial upgraded EastGroup Properties from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com cut EastGroup Properties from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 19th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $175.00 to $172.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on EastGroup Properties from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $187.81.

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.