Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently commented on OC. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Owens Corning from $192.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Argus upped their price objective on Owens Corning from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup raised their target price on Owens Corning from $150.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a neutral rating and set a $187.00 target price on shares of Owens Corning in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Owens Corning from $169.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Owens Corning currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $179.00.

Owens Corning Stock Up 1.1 %

OC stock opened at $173.72 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $175.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $161.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07, a PEG ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 1.46. Owens Corning has a fifty-two week low of $109.95 and a fifty-two week high of $184.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.76.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.28 billion. Owens Corning had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 26.52%. Owens Corning’s quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.77 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Owens Corning will post 15.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Owens Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 15th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Owens Corning’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Owens Corning news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 3,423 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.47, for a total value of $604,056.81. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,008,405.07. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Owens Corning news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 3,423 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.47, for a total transaction of $604,056.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,008,405.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Marcio A. Sandri sold 9,697 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $1,726,066.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 62,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,195,310. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,360 shares of company stock valued at $2,916,365. Company insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Owens Corning

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,272,150 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $336,801,000 after purchasing an additional 15,714 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Owens Corning by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,481,937 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $219,668,000 after buying an additional 35,530 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Owens Corning by 74.4% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,251,653 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $210,040,000 after buying an additional 533,910 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Owens Corning by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,057,518 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $156,756,000 after buying an additional 75,594 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 6,116.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 832,594 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $123,415,000 after acquiring an additional 819,201 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.40% of the company’s stock.

About Owens Corning

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications.