Heartland Advisors Inc. Takes $2.83 Million Position in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP)

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired 16,055 shares of EastGroup Properties, valued at approximately $2.8 million, during the first quarter according to their 13F filing.
• Institutional ownership of EastGroup Properties is high, with 92.14% of the stock held by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• EastGroup Properties reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.21, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.40, yielding 3.40% annually.

Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new position in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 16,055 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $2,828,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of EGP. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in EastGroup Properties by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,990,950 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,121,978,000 after buying an additional 72,199 shares during the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. raised its position in EastGroup Properties by 141.6% during the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 2,855,920 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $458,347,000 after buying an additional 1,673,663 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in EastGroup Properties by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,579,515 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $253,496,000 after buying an additional 21,432 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in EastGroup Properties by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,413,716 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $226,888,000 after buying an additional 273,217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in EastGroup Properties by 234.7% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,222,064 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $215,267,000 after buying an additional 856,971 shares during the last quarter. 92.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

Shares of EastGroup Properties stock traded up $0.86 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $166.36. 138,134 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 435,803. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $137.67 and a 1 year high of $192.21. The company has a market capitalization of $8.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $168.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.01. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 34.85% and a return on equity of 7.29%. The business had revenue of $177.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.05 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that EastGroup Properties, Inc. will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. EastGroup Properties's payout ratio is 120.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on EGP shares. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $193.00 to $182.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $183.00 to $182.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $194.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of EastGroup Properties from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $189.93.

EastGroup Properties 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.