Invesco Ltd. Lowers Holdings in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Invesco Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 982,052 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,273 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 2.95% of Eagle Materials worth $242,331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EXP. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Eagle Materials by 1.4% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,981 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $858,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Sprott Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 1,695 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $418,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,086 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Eagle Materials by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 569 shares of the construction company's stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in Eagle Materials by 1.5% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,872 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,114,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

EXP traded down $2.80 on Wednesday, hitting $220.97. 88,926 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 386,358. Eagle Materials Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.61 and a fifty-two week high of $321.93. The stock has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.78 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $226.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $259.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.97 by ($0.38). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 20.91%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Eagle Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on EXP. Citigroup lowered shares of Eagle Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on Eagle Materials in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $242.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $279.40.

Insider Activity at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director Michael R. Nicolais acquired 310 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,655 shares of the company's stock, valued at $940,650.80. This trade represents a 9.27 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

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.