Premier Fund Managers Ltd Has $4.75 Million Stock Position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Premier Fund Managers Ltd reduced its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 9.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,281 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,099 shares during the quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd owned approximately 0.06% of Eagle Materials worth $4,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in EXP. 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 valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $81,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Eagle Materials by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 569 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $140,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Eagle Materials by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $170,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $330.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $334.00 to $280.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eagle Materials has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.40.

Insider Transactions at Eagle Materials

In other Eagle Materials news, Director Michael R. Nicolais purchased 310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $940,650.80. This trade represents a 9.27 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

NYSE:EXP opened at $225.77 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $237.15 and a 200 day moving average of $265.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 1.37. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 52-week low of $205.44 and a 52-week high of $321.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 2.76.

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

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders 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 dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

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.