Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 25.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 805,257 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 162,049 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned about 2.38% of Eagle Materials worth $175,111,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of EXP. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 79.2% during the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 95 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Eagle Materials during the first quarter worth about $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Tompkins Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 132.7% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 114 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on EXP shares. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $280.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Raymond James downgraded Eagle Materials from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Eagle Materials from $252.00 to $311.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $270.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $289.78.

Insider Transactions at Eagle Materials

In related news, CFO Dale Craig Kesler sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.76, for a total value of $1,333,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 60,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,135,778.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director George John Damiris sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.62, for a total transaction of $277,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,943 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,205,135.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Dale Craig Kesler sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were 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 directly owns 60,488 shares in the company, valued at $16,135,778.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,851 shares of company stock valued at $2,124,258. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eagle Materials Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE EXP opened at $287.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.12 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $251.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $247.08. Eagle Materials Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.03 and a fifty-two week high of $293.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $3.94 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $608.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $622.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.55 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 15.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Eagle Materials 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.