Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP - Free Report) by 234.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,222,064 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 856,971 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 2.34% of EastGroup Properties worth $215,267,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bar Harbor Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 0.3% during the first quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 23,344 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,112,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Optas LLC lifted its stake in EastGroup Properties by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,397 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,058 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,521 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 3.6% during the first quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,264 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 92.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EastGroup Properties Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:EGP opened at $169.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a 1-year low of $137.67 and a 1-year high of $192.61. The company has a 50-day moving average of $168.91 and a 200 day moving average of $168.93. The firm has a market cap of $8.92 billion, a PE ratio of 37.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.01.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $174.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.67 million. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 34.60% and a return on equity of 7.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that EastGroup Properties, Inc. will post 8.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. EastGroup Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 122.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EGP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $199.00 to $187.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties from $193.00 to $182.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of EastGroup Properties from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given 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 price target of $188.00.

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.

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