Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Trading Down 8% Following Weak Earnings

Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE:EXP)’s share price was down 8% during trading on Thursday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $215.24 and last traded at $214.60. Approximately 380,715 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 386,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.14.

The construction company reported $4.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.12). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 31.21% and a net margin of 19.81%.The business had revenue of $638.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $635.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.31 EPS. Eagle Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 7.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on EXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Eagle Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Eagle Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $246.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $255.90.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXP. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $87,626,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,140,621 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $475,068,000 after buying an additional 339,089 shares in the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 42.5% during the 1st quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 909,633 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $201,875,000 after buying an additional 271,410 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 80.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 521,276 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $105,356,000 after buying an additional 233,153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 57.2% during the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 611,745 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $123,640,000 after buying an additional 222,537 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.73. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $233.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $222.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a PE ratio of 15.78 and a beta of 1.31.

About Eagle Materials

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.