Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Quanex Building Products from “strong buy” to “buy,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “hold” with an average price target of $28.00.
• Quanex reported quarterly earnings of $0.79 per share, exceeding the $0.66 consensus estimate, while revenue of $501.85 million also topped expectations.
• Institutional investors own 97.48% of the company, with major positions or purchases from BlackRock, Dimensional Fund Advisors, and other funds.

Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Quanex Building Products from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Quanex Building Products from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Quanex Building Products in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.00.

Quanex Building Products Stock Performance

Shares of NX opened at $18.94 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $867.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.13, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $20.03 and a 200 day moving average of $18.93. Quanex Building Products has a 12 month low of $11.04 and a 12 month high of $23.33.

Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 3rd. The construction company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $501.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $497.51 million. Quanex Building Products had a return on equity of 11.61% and a net margin of 2.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($6.04) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quanex Building Products will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quanex Building Products

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NX. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Quanex Building Products in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $136,089,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Quanex Building Products by 36.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,741,613 shares of the construction company's stock worth $31,296,000 after acquiring an additional 462,992 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in Quanex Building Products in the first quarter worth $17,970,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in Quanex Building Products by 1.2% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 770,756 shares of the construction company's stock worth $13,850,000 after acquiring an additional 8,848 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in Quanex Building Products by 961.7% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 592,785 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $10,652,000 after acquiring an additional 536,949 shares during the last quarter. 97.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Quanex Building Products

Quanex Building Products Corporation NYSE: NX manufactures energy-efficient, engineered components used primarily in residential and commercial building products. Its offerings support the production of windows, doors, and other fenestration systems, as well as cabinetry and related interior products.

The company's products include insulating glass components and spacer systems, window and door screens, weatherstripping and sealing products, extruded profiles, and other components designed to improve the performance, durability, and appearance of fenestration products.

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