Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Quanex Building Products Corporation (NYSE:NX) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $15.08, but opened at $20.00. Quanex Building Products shares last traded at $16.7010, with a volume of 1,097,205 shares trading hands.

The construction company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.33. Quanex Building Products had a negative net margin of 13.65% and a positive return on equity of 11.87%. The business had revenue of $489.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $472.62 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS.

Quanex Building Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. Quanex Building Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -5.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on NX. Zacks Research raised Quanex Building Products from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Quanex Building Products in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NX. Medina Value Partners LLC acquired a new position in Quanex Building Products in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,602,000. Bastion Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Quanex Building Products by 161.3% in the second quarter. Bastion Asset Management Inc. now owns 314,601 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,093,000 after buying an additional 194,205 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Quanex Building Products during the third quarter worth about $2,617,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quanex Building Products in the 1st quarter worth about $3,413,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management lifted its position in Quanex Building Products by 658.9% in the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 204,900 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,914,000 after purchasing an additional 177,900 shares during the last quarter. 97.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quanex Building Products Trading Up 9.0%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $13.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.86. The stock has a market cap of $754.08 million, a P/E ratio of -2.99, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

About Quanex Building Products

Quanex Building Products Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides components for the fenestration industry in the United States, rest of Europe, Canada, Asia, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North American Fenestration, European Fenestration, and North American Cabinet Components.