Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) PT Raised to $315.00 at Stephens

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) had its price objective lifted by Stephens from $280.00 to $315.00 in a research report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the construction company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup increased their target price on Eagle Materials from $252.00 to $311.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Eagle Materials from $270.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Eagle Materials from $238.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Eagle Materials from $300.00 to $286.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Eagle Materials from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $289.78.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of EXP stock opened at $253.59 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Eagle Materials has a twelve month low of $145.03 and a twelve month high of $279.69. The company has a market cap of $8.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $229.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $242.52.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $3.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $608.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $622.06 million. Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 37.10% and a net margin of 21.65%. Eagle Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.55 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Eagle Materials will post 15.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.39%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Eric Cribbs sold 1,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.06, for a total transaction of $512,838.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,861,385.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Eagle Materials news, insider Eric Cribbs sold 1,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.06, for a total value of $512,838.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,861,385.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Dale Craig Kesler sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.76, for a total value of $1,333,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 60,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,135,778.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Materials

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,085,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 89,090 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,071,000 after buying an additional 10,514 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,988,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 39.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,537 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 2,993 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 13.0% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 35,894 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,754,000 after acquiring an additional 4,130 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

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.