EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $181.50, but opened at $177.45. EastGroup Properties shares last traded at $177.27, with a volume of 2,593 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EGP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of EastGroup Properties from $187.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Barclays upgraded shares of EastGroup Properties from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $207.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Piper Sandler set a $220.00 target price on shares of EastGroup Properties in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on EastGroup Properties from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, EastGroup Properties currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.88.

EastGroup Properties Trading Down 0.1%

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $179.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $171.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.01 and a quick ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $9.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.11.

EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.28 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $182.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $181.88 million. EastGroup Properties had a net margin of 35.58% and a return on equity of 7.28%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. EastGroup Properties has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.940-8.980 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.300-2.340 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that EastGroup Properties, Inc. will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.55 per share. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. EastGroup Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 130.25%.

Insider Activity at EastGroup Properties

In other EastGroup Properties news, EVP Richard Reid Dunbar sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $350,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,610,250. This represents a 8.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EastGroup Properties

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Canton Hathaway LLC increased its holdings in EastGroup Properties by 31.6% in the third quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC now owns 250 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,668 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $613,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 999 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of EastGroup Properties by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 2,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in EastGroup Properties by 3.2% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,489 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

EastGroup Properties Company 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.