Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Hits New 52-Week High at $279.71

Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $279.71 and last traded at $278.79, with a volume of 256032 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $270.68.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Eagle Materials from $270.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Raymond James cut Eagle Materials from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup increased their target price on Eagle Materials from $252.00 to $311.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Eagle Materials from $300.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $289.78.

Eagle Materials Trading Up 1.1 %

The company has a market cap of $9.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $247.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $246.35.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.37. Eagle Materials had a net margin of 21.65% and a return on equity of 37.10%. The company had revenue of $608.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $622.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.55 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 15.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.34%.

Insider Activity at Eagle Materials

In related news, insider Eric Cribbs sold 1,851 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.06, for a total transaction of $512,838.06. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,937 shares in the company, valued at $3,861,385.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Eagle Materials news, insider Eric Cribbs sold 1,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.06, for a total value of $512,838.06. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,937 shares in the company, valued at $3,861,385.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Dale Craig Kesler sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.76, for a total transaction of $1,333,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 60,488 shares in the company, valued at $16,135,778.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EXP. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Eagle Materials by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 35,894 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,754,000 after buying an additional 4,130 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Eagle Materials by 261.8% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 871,970 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $176,870,000 after buying an additional 630,964 shares during the period. M&G Plc acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $9,628,000. Mad River Investors acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $1,552,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Eagle Materials by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 255,775 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $69,507,000 after acquiring an additional 4,947 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Company 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.