EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans decreased its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) by 43.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,275 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 66,461 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.18% of EastGroup Properties worth $14,007,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canton Hathaway LLC purchased a new stake in shares of EastGroup Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in EastGroup Properties by 503.3% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 362 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in EastGroup Properties by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 538 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in EastGroup Properties in the third quarter valued at $102,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of EastGroup Properties by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 602 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.14% of the company’s stock.

EastGroup Properties Stock Down 2.1 %

EGP opened at $173.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. EastGroup Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.10 and a 12 month high of $192.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $175.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.91.

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

EastGroup Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. EastGroup Properties’s payout ratio is currently 120.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EGP shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on EastGroup Properties from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of EastGroup Properties in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James upgraded shares of EastGroup Properties from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced 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 report on Monday, December 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of EastGroup Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.47.

EastGroup Properties 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.