Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Lowers Position in Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its position in shares of Owens Corning (NYSE:OC - Free Report) by 68.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,448 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 5,296 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Owens Corning were worth $417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Owens Corning in the fourth quarter worth $208,519,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Owens Corning by 113.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 797,743 shares of the construction company's stock worth $140,818,000 after acquiring an additional 424,786 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Owens Corning in the fourth quarter worth $51,220,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Owens Corning by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,148,610 shares of the construction company's stock worth $366,166,000 after acquiring an additional 238,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LGT Group Foundation purchased a new position in Owens Corning in the fourth quarter worth $39,054,000. 88.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Owens Corning Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE OC traded up $3.39 on Wednesday, hitting $140.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 204,237 shares, compared to its average volume of 970,873. Owens Corning has a 52-week low of $123.40 and a 52-week high of $214.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $146.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $171.72. The firm has a market cap of $12.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.96, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.39.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The construction company reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.35. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 9.92%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.21 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Owens Corning will post 15.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Owens Corning Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Owens Corning's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.70%.

Insider Activity at Owens Corning

In related news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 1,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.97, for a total transaction of $321,947.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,635 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,140,490.95. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on OC. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Owens Corning from $215.00 to $179.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $212.00 to $207.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $245.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $200.00 to $176.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Owens Corning from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Owens Corning has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.58.

About Owens Corning

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications.