JLB & Associates Inc. Purchases New Position in Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP)

JLB & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 4,272 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $948,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of EXP. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $93,672,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Eagle Materials by 26,787.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 181,761 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $40,338,000 after purchasing an additional 181,085 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,115,000. Baupost Group LLC MA raised its position in Eagle Materials by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 638,223 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $157,488,000 after purchasing an additional 137,950 shares during the period. Finally, ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,778,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Eagle Materials Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Eagle Materials stock traded up $1.05 on Friday, reaching $196.59. 469,696 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 396,159. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $216.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Eagle Materials Inc has a 1-year low of $191.91 and a 1-year high of $321.93. The company has a market cap of $6.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.29 and a beta of 1.28.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The construction company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by ($0.26). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 32.71% and a net margin of 20.50%. The firm had revenue of $470.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $483.14 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.24 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Eagle Materials Inc will post 14.39 EPS for the current year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Eagle Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EXP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Eagle Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Eagle Materials from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Stephens set a $255.00 target price on Eagle Materials and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $241.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $237.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eagle Materials has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $254.44.

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.