Premier Fund Managers Ltd Sells 2,099 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Premier Fund Managers Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,281 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,099 shares during the quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $4,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EXP. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 78.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,948 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $10,915,000 after acquiring an additional 16,645 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter worth $8,890,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Eagle Materials by 242.4% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 5,514 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 60.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,735,133 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $499,111,000 after buying an additional 652,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $38,115,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on EXP shares. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $242.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.40.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EXP opened at $225.77 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 1.37. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 1-year low of $205.44 and a 1-year high of $321.93. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $237.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $265.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.76 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.97 by ($0.38). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 20.91%. Research analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Eagle Materials’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Materials

In related news, Director Michael R. Nicolais bought 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,655 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $940,650.80. The trade was a 9.27 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Materials 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.