Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) shares hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $188.76 and last traded at $189.73, with a volume of 68059 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $196.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on EXP shares. Citigroup reduced their target price on Eagle Materials from $232.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Eagle Materials from $251.00 to $241.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target (down from $230.00) on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $228.36.

Eagle Materials Stock Down 2.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a current ratio of 4.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $222.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $223.93.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $555.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $556.41 million. Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 28.96% and a net margin of 18.70%.The company’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.59 EPS. 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. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 7.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXP. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $2,317,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Eagle Materials by 2,127.3% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,225 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. Aristides Capital LLC raised its position in Eagle Materials by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 5,821 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,203,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $248,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,634,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.