Polaris Capital Management LLC Sells 1,400 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Polaris Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,000 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,400 shares during the quarter. Polaris Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $1,727,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EXP. FMR LLC increased its position in Eagle Materials by 30.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,801,257 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,093,432,000 after acquiring an additional 878,400 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 60.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,735,133 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $499,111,000 after purchasing an additional 652,836 shares during the period. Baupost Group LLC MA boosted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials by 46.2% in the third quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 500,273 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $143,904,000 after buying an additional 158,171 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eagle Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,846,000. Finally, Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new position in Eagle Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $22,552,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Materials Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Eagle Materials stock opened at $255.94 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $8.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.28 and a beta of 1.37. Eagle Materials Inc. has a twelve month low of $211.44 and a twelve month high of $321.93. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $258.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $271.25.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.97 by ($0.38). Eagle Materials had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 20.91%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.39%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Eagle Materials from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $277.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $330.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.80.

Insider Activity

In other Eagle Materials news, CEO Michael Haack sold 11,888 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.50, for a total transaction of $3,691,224.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 85,811 shares in the company, valued at $26,644,315.50. The trade was a 12.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 3,577 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.30, for a total transaction of $1,074,173.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $330,330. This trade represents a 76.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.