Kentucky Retirement Systems Cuts Stake in Builders FirstSource, Inc. (NYSE:BLDR)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its stake in shares of Builders FirstSource, Inc. (NYSE:BLDR) by 3.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,730 shares of the company’s stock after selling 273 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Builders FirstSource were worth $966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Builders FirstSource by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,898,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,557,703,000 after purchasing an additional 740,214 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Builders FirstSource by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,253,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,105,000 after purchasing an additional 26,314 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Builders FirstSource by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,237,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $319,898,000 after purchasing an additional 77,666 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Builders FirstSource by 47.2% during the 4th quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,943,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,776,000 after acquiring an additional 623,583 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Builders FirstSource by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,578,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,637,000 after acquiring an additional 120,400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BLDR has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Builders FirstSource in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Builders FirstSource from $180.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Builders FirstSource from $146.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price target (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Builders FirstSource in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Builders FirstSource from $145.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.11.

Builders FirstSource Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BLDR opened at $118.92 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $13.14 billion, a PE ratio of 15.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.59 and a beta of 1.69. Builders FirstSource, Inc. has a 12 month low of $102.60 and a 12 month high of $203.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.65.

Builders FirstSource (NYSE:BLDR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.67 billion. Builders FirstSource had a net margin of 5.66% and a return on equity of 28.02%. Builders FirstSource’s revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Builders FirstSource, Inc. will post 11.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Builders FirstSource declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Builders FirstSource

In related news, Director Dirkson R. Charles bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $109.67 per share, for a total transaction of $548,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $548,350. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul S. Levy bought 283,517 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $111.21 per share, with a total value of $31,529,925.57. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,672,687 shares in the company, valued at $186,019,521.27. This represents a 20.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 505,000 shares of company stock valued at $56,032,120. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

About Builders FirstSource

Builders FirstSource, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and supplies building materials, manufactured components, and construction services to professional homebuilders, sub-contractors, remodelers, and consumers in the United States. It offers lumber and lumber sheet goods comprising dimensional lumber, plywood, and oriented strand board products that are used in on-site house framing; manufactured products, such as wood floor and roof trusses, floor trusses, wall panels, stairs, and engineered wood products; and windows, and interior and exterior door units, as well as interior trims and custom products comprising intricate mouldings, stair parts, and columns under the Synboard brand name.