Short Interest in EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Rises By 35.4%

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,950,000 shares, an increase of 35.4% from the February 13th total of 1,440,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 404,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,394 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,063,000 after purchasing an additional 1,648 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in EastGroup Properties by 31.3% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 5,008 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $936,000 after buying an additional 1,193 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in EastGroup Properties by 13.6% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 52,679 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,842,000 after buying an additional 6,307 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 22.2% during the third quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 343,140 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $64,105,000 after acquiring an additional 62,381 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 1.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 153,736 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,721,000 after acquiring an additional 2,633 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

EastGroup Properties Stock Performance

NYSE:EGP traded up $1.31 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $181.23. 463,845 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 323,573. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $175.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. EastGroup Properties has a 52 week low of $155.10 and a 52 week high of $192.61.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.99. EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 35.57%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 120.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on EastGroup Properties from $186.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a 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 report on Thursday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of EastGroup Properties from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James raised shares of EastGroup Properties from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $185.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $181.00) on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research report on Monday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.47.

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.