Rafferty Asset Management LLC Purchases 13,931 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc $EXP

Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) by 113.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,238 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,931 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.08% of Eagle Materials worth $6,115,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 130.9% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 127 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Eagle Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 7,750.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 157 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 3,060.0% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 158 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 102.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Materials Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE EXP opened at $219.24 on Tuesday. Eagle Materials Inc has a 1 year low of $191.91 and a 1 year high of $243.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 4.27 and a quick ratio of 2.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $223.19 and a 200 day moving average of $224.61. The stock has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.60 and a beta of 1.35.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by ($0.10). Eagle Materials had a net margin of 18.70% and a return on equity of 28.96%. The business had revenue of $555.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $556.41 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.59 EPS. Eagle Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Eagle Materials’s payout ratio is presently 7.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on EXP. Zacks Research downgraded Eagle Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.36.

About Eagle Materials

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.