EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Short Interest Update

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) saw a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,370,000 shares, a decline of 22.6% from the December 31st total of 1,770,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 333,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in EastGroup Properties by 47.7% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 503.3% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 362 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 90.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 536 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in EastGroup Properties during the 3rd quarter valued at $102,000. 92.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EGP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $204.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $186.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded EastGroup Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $174.00 to $194.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on EastGroup Properties from $214.00 to $199.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $190.00 to $186.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, EastGroup Properties has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.88.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EGP opened at $168.44 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $8.34 billion, a PE ratio of 34.80, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s fifty day moving average is $165.73 and its 200 day moving average is $176.42. EastGroup Properties has a 52 week low of $155.10 and a 52 week high of $192.61.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 115.70%.

EastGroup Properties Company 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.