Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 61 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 920 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the third quarter valued at $64,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $81,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 760 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $188,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 789.9% in the third quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 703 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $202,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Stock Down 4.0 %

Shares of EXP opened at $240.48 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $252.56 and its 200 day moving average is $270.74. The company has a market capitalization of $8.01 billion, a PE ratio of 17.18 and a beta of 1.37. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 12-month low of $211.44 and a 12-month high of $321.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.97 by ($0.38). Eagle Materials had a net margin of 20.91% and a return on equity of 34.14%. Research analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Insider Activity at Eagle Materials

In other Eagle Materials news, CEO Michael Haack sold 11,888 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.50, for a total value of $3,691,224.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 85,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,644,315.50. The trade was a 12.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael R. Nicolais acquired 310 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $257.36 per share, for a total transaction of $79,781.60. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $940,650.80. The trade was a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Eagle Materials from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Eagle Materials from $277.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Eagle Materials from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.80.

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.