Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 41,725 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc $EXP

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. cut its stake in Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) by 10.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 345,550 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 41,725 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $65,464,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EXP. Baupost Group LLC MA lifted its position in Eagle Materials by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 1,185,248 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $244,967,000 after acquiring an additional 245,588 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 2.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 627,427 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $118,846,000 after acquiring an additional 16,782 shares during the period. Black Creek Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $103,778,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Eagle Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $90,147,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 4.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 363,508 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $84,712,000 after purchasing an additional 15,899 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Stock Performance

EXP opened at $213.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 3.66. Eagle Materials Inc has a 52-week low of $171.99 and a 52-week high of $245.53. The firm has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.26 and a beta of 1.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $213.86 and its 200-day moving average is $211.04.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 19th. The construction company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.32. Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 28.27% and a net margin of 18.36%.The business had revenue of $479.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $451.99 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.00 earnings per share. Eagle Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc will post 12.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on EXP shares. Wall Street Zen raised Eagle Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Eagle Materials from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stephens dropped their target price on Eagle Materials from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eagle Materials presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $226.00.

Eagle Materials Profile

Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP) is a Dallas, Texas–based manufacturer of building materials serving construction and heavy industry markets across the United States. The company’s primary products include portland and masonry cements, gypsum wallboard, lightweight aggregate, paperboard packaging, and roofing granules. These product lines support a wide range of end uses—from residential and commercial buildings to infrastructure projects and industrial applications.

Since its spin-off from a major homebuilding company in 2004, Eagle Materials has grown through targeted facility expansions and strategic acquisitions.