StockNews.com Downgrades EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) to Sell

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

EGP has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $186.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised EastGroup Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $174.00 to $194.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on EastGroup Properties from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up from $181.00) on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded EastGroup Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, EastGroup Properties presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $188.24.

EastGroup Properties Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of EGP opened at $159.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.34, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.94. EastGroup Properties has a twelve month low of $137.67 and a twelve month high of $192.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $172.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $171.21.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.99. EastGroup Properties had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 35.57%. On average, research analysts anticipate that EastGroup Properties will post 8.94 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of EastGroup Properties

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EGP. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in EastGroup Properties by 3.6% in 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 during the period. Optas LLC lifted its position in EastGroup Properties by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,397 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of EastGroup Properties by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of EastGroup Properties in the first quarter valued at approximately $385,000. Finally, Bar Harbor Wealth Management raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

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.