Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) Shares Acquired by Skylands Capital LLC

Skylands Capital LLC lifted its stake in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 44,955 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,120 shares during the period. Eagle Materials accounts for approximately 1.3% of Skylands Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $9,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Eagle Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Eagle Materials by 277.4% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 200 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the third quarter worth about $53,000. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on EXP shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Eagle Materials from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Stephens increased their price objective on Eagle Materials from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $238.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $170.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.50.

Insider Activity

In other Eagle Materials news, SVP Tony Thompson sold 638 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.07, for a total transaction of $149,974.66. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,383,362.51. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Eagle Materials news, EVP Matt Newby sold 2,940 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total value of $738,381.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,479,841.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Tony Thompson sold 638 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.07, for a total value of $149,974.66. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,383,362.51. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 6,925 shares of company stock valued at $1,693,376 in the last 90 days. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

EXP traded up $1.14 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $257.84. 66,145 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 292,699. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $255.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.88 billion, a PE ratio of 18.12 and a beta of 1.34. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 1-year low of $145.03 and a 1-year high of $272.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The construction company reported $3.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $558.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $537.23 million. Eagle Materials had a net margin of 22.24% and a return on equity of 40.05%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.39%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.06%.

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; 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.