Heartland Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in EastGroup Properties, Inc. $EGP

Heartland Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) by 40.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 37,545 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,800 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 0.07% of EastGroup Properties worth $6,355,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 0.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,350,473 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,244,141,000 after purchasing an additional 43,633 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 2.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,667,793 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $449,491,000 after buying an additional 65,060 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 43.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,985,543 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $336,076,000 after buying an additional 602,253 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in EastGroup Properties during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $252,405,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,062,770 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $177,636,000 after acquiring an additional 18,116 shares in the last quarter. 92.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EastGroup Properties Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EGP opened at $190.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.19, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.11. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.67 and a twelve month high of $193.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a 50 day moving average of $183.24 and a 200 day moving average of $175.70.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $1.55 dividend. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 127.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on EGP shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $177.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $183.00 price objective on shares of EastGroup Properties and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Monday, December 29th. BNP Paribas Exane raised EastGroup Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $207.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Evercore set a $188.00 price target on EastGroup Properties in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $197.89.

EastGroup Properties Profile

EastGroup Properties, Inc (NYSE: EGP) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, development and management of industrial properties. Focused primarily on distribution-oriented facilities, the company’s portfolio consists of modern warehouse and light manufacturing buildings located in high-growth Sunbelt markets. EastGroup concentrates on delivering strategic logistics solutions to customers requiring proximity to transportation hubs and major population centers across the southern United States.

Since its founding in 1969, EastGroup has pursued a disciplined growth strategy that combines property development, targeted acquisitions and hands-on asset management.