PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Grows Position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 21.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,465 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EXP. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 3.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,032 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,981 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $858,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Eagle Materials by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 569 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake 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 worth $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EXP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $242.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Eagle Materials from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $292.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director Michael R. Nicolais bought 310 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following 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 acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of EXP opened at $216.80 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.49 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $240.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $267.09. Eagle Materials Inc. has a twelve month low of $205.44 and a twelve month high of $321.93. 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) 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 net margin of 20.91% and a return on equity of 34.14%. Equities analysts forecast that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.