Brokerages Set Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) Target Price at $274.40

Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $274.40.

A number of brokerages recently commented on EXP. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup lowered shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $334.00 to $280.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $280.00 to $245.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $242.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th.

Insider Activity at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director Michael R. Nicolais acquired 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $940,650.80. This trade represents a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Eagle Materials by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 205 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in Eagle Materials by 154.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 237 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 26.8% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 246 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 233.1% in the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 443 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Stock Up 2.0 %

EXP opened at $226.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $219.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $254.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Eagle Materials has a 52 week low of $201.61 and a 52 week high of $321.93.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

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.