Intech Investment Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Eagle Materials Inc $EXP

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) by 212.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,610 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,178 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $1,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,140,621 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $475,068,000 after purchasing an additional 339,089 shares in the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA lifted its stake in Eagle Materials by 42.5% in the 1st quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 909,633 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $201,875,000 after buying an additional 271,410 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 734,541 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $153,607,000 after buying an additional 28,559 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in Eagle Materials by 57.2% during the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 611,745 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $123,640,000 after buying an additional 222,537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 10.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 576,249 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $127,876,000 after acquiring an additional 54,324 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eagle Materials Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of NYSE:EXP opened at $209.86 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $224.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Eagle Materials Inc has a 12-month low of $191.91 and a 12-month high of $321.93. The firm has a market cap of $6.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 1.31.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The construction company reported $4.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $638.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.55 million. Eagle Materials had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 31.21%. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.31 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Eagle Materials Inc will post 14.39 EPS for the current year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 (DPR) is currently 7.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on EXP shares. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Eagle Materials from $255.00 to $233.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $261.00 to $251.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Eagle Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Eagle Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $243.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Materials

In related news, Director David E. Rush acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $208.08 per share, with a total value of $208,080.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 4,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 at this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Eagle Materials

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.