First Trust Advisors LP Sells 18,173 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

First Trust Advisors LP lessened its stake in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) by 14.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 105,851 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 18,173 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.32% of Eagle Materials worth $26,120,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sprott Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 1,695 shares of the construction company's stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,086 shares of the construction company's stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 569 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 920 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Eagle Materials by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company's stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on EXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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 target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Eagle Materials from $330.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $242.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $274.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael R. Nicolais acquired 310 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased 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 owns 3,655 shares of the company's stock, valued at $940,650.80. This represents a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of EXP traded up $3.43 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $229.82. 66,158 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 333,019. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.61 and a 12 month high of $321.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $7.65 billion, a PE ratio of 16.48 and a beta of 1.25. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $219.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $254.77.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Eagle Materials's payout ratio is 7.14%.

Eagle Materials 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.