Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $226.00 price objective on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Zacks Research raised Eagle Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $232.70.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

NYSE:EXP opened at $209.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.59 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88 and a beta of 1.38. Eagle Materials has a 1-year low of $191.91 and a 1-year high of $262.81. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $220.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.05. The company has a current ratio of 4.27, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

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

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Eagle Materials’s payout ratio is presently 7.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director David E. Rush purchased 1,000 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price 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 approximately $868,317.84. The trade was a 31.52% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eagle Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EXP. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $87,626,000. Baupost Group LLC MA raised its stake in Eagle Materials by 39.0% during the third quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 939,660 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,978,000 after acquiring an additional 263,403 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 80.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 521,276 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $105,356,000 after acquiring an additional 233,153 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 611,745 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $123,640,000 after purchasing an additional 222,537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,812,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

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.