Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 128,271 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) by 165.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 206,019 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 128,271 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.62% of Eagle Materials worth $45,722,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 234.6% during the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 4,905 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 3,439 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 39.0% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 285 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH raised its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 3,452 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $766,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $1,657,000. Finally, Skylands Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Skylands Capital LLC now owns 47,455 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $10,532,000 after purchasing an additional 5,725 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Eagle Materials Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of EXP traded up $7.67 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $227.15. The company had a trading volume of 631,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 402,290. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $212.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $226.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 2.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 1.26. Eagle Materials Inc has a 52-week low of $191.91 and a 52-week high of $321.93.

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

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. 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

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Eagle Materials from $245.00 to $237.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Truist Financial decreased their target price 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 set a $241.00 target price on Eagle Materials and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Eagle Materials from $279.00 to $230.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Stephens set a $255.00 price objective on Eagle Materials and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $254.44.

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, 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.