Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Holdings in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 899,219 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 10,435 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.82% of EastGroup Properties worth $168,032,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 47.7% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 2,085 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 31,093 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,328,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in EastGroup Properties by 7.7% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,598 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

EastGroup Properties Stock Performance

NYSE EGP opened at $171.25 on Monday. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a 52-week low of $155.23 and a 52-week high of $192.61. The company has a fifty day moving average of $174.43 and a 200-day moving average of $177.88. The company has a market capitalization of $8.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($0.97). EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 8.56% and a net margin of 37.19%. The business had revenue of $162.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $161.52 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that EastGroup Properties, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st 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 3.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 115.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on EGP. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $158.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $198.00 to $193.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $186.00 target price on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded EastGroup Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $175.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, EastGroup Properties has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.80.

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.