Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $235.20.

EXP has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Eagle Materials from $261.00 to $251.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $226.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. DA Davidson cut their price target on Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $246.00 price objective on Eagle Materials in a research note on Monday, October 27th.

Eagle Materials Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of EXP stock opened at $219.67 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $220.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.21 and a beta of 1.36. Eagle Materials has a 52-week low of $191.91 and a 52-week high of $264.91.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The construction company reported $4.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.12). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 30.13% and a net margin of 19.41%.The business had revenue of $638.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $635.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Eagle Materials will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 12th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Materials

In other Eagle Materials news, Director David E. Rush bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $208.08 per share, for a total transaction of $208,080.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $868,317.84. This represents a 31.52% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Materials

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXP. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,962 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its position in Eagle Materials by 1.8% in the third quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 2,799 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its position in Eagle Materials by 3.6% in the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,426 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Eagle Materials by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 389 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Eagle Materials by 20.3% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Company Profile

Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) is a Dallas, Texas–based manufacturer of building materials serving construction and heavy industry markets across the United States. The company’s primary products include portland and masonry cements, gypsum wallboard, lightweight aggregate, paperboard packaging, and roofing granules. These product lines support a wide range of end uses—from residential and commercial buildings to infrastructure projects and industrial applications.

Since its spin-off from a major homebuilding company in 2004, Eagle Materials has grown through targeted facility expansions and strategic acquisitions.