Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) Cut to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on OC. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Owens Corning in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. Argus boosted their price target on Owens Corning from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Owens Corning from $164.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Owens Corning from $150.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $187.00 price target on shares of Owens Corning in a report on Monday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.07.

Owens Corning Price Performance

Shares of OC stock opened at $175.63 on Wednesday. Owens Corning has a fifty-two week low of $109.95 and a fifty-two week high of $184.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a PEG ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.76. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.11.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 26.52% and a net margin of 11.53%. Owens Corning’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Owens Corning will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Owens Corning

In related news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 3,423 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.47, for a total value of $604,056.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,008,405.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Owens Corning news, VP Mari Doerfler sold 240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.05, for a total value of $43,692.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,954 shares in the company, valued at approximately $901,875.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 3,423 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.47, for a total value of $604,056.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,008,405.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,360 shares of company stock valued at $2,916,365 in the last three months. 0.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Owens Corning

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OC. Paralel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Owens Corning by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC now owns 19,963 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,723,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,165 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 21,644 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,952,000 after purchasing an additional 1,841 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Owens Corning during the 3rd quarter worth $1,747,000. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Owens Corning during the 3rd quarter worth $1,186,000. 88.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.