First Dallas Securities Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

First Dallas Securities Inc. cut its holdings in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 20.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,532 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 3,214 shares during the quarter. Eagle Materials comprises 1.6% of First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $3,406,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,085,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 89,090 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,071,000 after purchasing an additional 10,514 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,988,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 39.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,537 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 2,993 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 261.8% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 871,970 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $176,870,000 after purchasing an additional 630,964 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EXP. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Eagle Materials from $238.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Citigroup cut their price objective on Eagle Materials from $311.00 to $297.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Stephens raised their target price on Eagle Materials from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.67.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

EXP stock traded up $2.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $217.46. 643,574 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 318,446. The company has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $240.97 and its 200 day moving average is $236.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.03 and a 12-month high of $276.61.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The construction company reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.72 by ($0.48). The business had revenue of $476.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $480.20 million. Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 37.31% and a net margin of 21.14%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.79 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.34%.

Eagle Materials Company Profile

Eagle Materials Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells heavy construction materials and light building materials in the United States. It operates in four segments: Cement, Concrete and Aggregates, Gypsum Wallboard, and Recycled Paperboard. The company engages in the mining of limestone for the manufacture, production, distribution, and sale of Portland cement, including Portland limestone cement; grinding and sale of slag; and mining of gypsum for the manufacture and sale of gypsum wallboards used to finish the interior walls and ceilings in residential, commercial, and industrial structures, as well as well as containerboard and lightweight packaging grades; manufacture and sale of recycled paperboard to the gypsum wallboard industry and other paperboard converters; the sale of readymix concrete; and mining and sale of aggregates, such as crushed stone, sand, and gravel.