Wells Fargo & Company MN Trims Stock Position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Wells Fargo & Company MN trimmed its position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) by 31.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 132,376 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 59,901 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned approximately 0.40% of Eagle Materials worth $32,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on EXP shares. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a "hold" rating and a $242.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $280.00 to $245.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $279.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eagle Materials news, Director Michael R. Nicolais bought 310 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $257.36 per share, for a total transaction of $79,781.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,655 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $940,650.80. This trade represents a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

EXP traded down $2.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $221.39. The stock had a trading volume of 76,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 385,862. The company has a market cap of $7.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.81 and a beta of 1.25. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 1 year low of $201.61 and a 1 year high of $321.93. The business has a fifty day moving average of $226.21 and a 200 day moving average of $259.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 2.76.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) last released its 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 net margin of 20.91% and a return on equity of 34.14%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

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

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.