Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Eagle Materials from “hold” to “sell.” MarketBeat reports a consensus “reduce” rating and an average price target of $193.33.
• Analysts have issued mixed assessments, with several lowering price targets while maintaining neutral or hold ratings.
• Eagle Materials reported quarterly EPS of $3.63, below the $3.82 consensus, while revenue of $652.75 million topped estimates and rose 2.2% year over year.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

EXP has been the topic of a number of other reports. DA Davidson set a $195.00 target price on Eagle Materials in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup upped their target price on Eagle Materials from $190.00 to $214.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Eagle Materials from $219.00 to $170.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Eagle Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Eagle Materials from $232.00 to $207.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $193.33.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EXP opened at $186.27 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $179.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $201.79. Eagle Materials has a twelve month low of $160.02 and a twelve month high of $245.53. The company has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 3.23, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The construction company reported $3.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.82 by ($0.19). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 26.87% and a net margin of 17.32%. The business had revenue of $652.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $633.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.23 EPS. Eagle Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Eagle Materials will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eagle Materials news, SVP Tony Thompson sold 3,074 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.96, for a total value of $626,973.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,068,562.32. The trade was a 23.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,280,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 87.2% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 15,356 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,455,000 after acquiring an additional 7,155 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Eagle Materials by 5,116.3% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 25,612 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,852,000 after buying an additional 25,121 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Eagle Materials during the 2nd quarter worth about $66,255,000. Finally, Redwood Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,189,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Eagle Materials Company Profile

Eagle Materials Inc NYSE: EXP is a U.S.-based manufacturer of building materials used in residential, commercial, infrastructure and industrial construction. The company's principal products include cement, gypsum wallboard, concrete and aggregates.

Its cement business produces and distributes Portland cement and related cement products, while its gypsum wallboard business supplies panels used in interior construction. Eagle Materials also provides ready-mixed concrete and construction aggregates, including crushed stone, sand and gravel, for building and infrastructure projects.

The company traces its history to Centex Construction Products, which was spun off from Centex Corporation in 1994 and later adopted the Eagle Materials name.

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