Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Purchases 1,465 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 36,695 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $9,055,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 53.0% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 205 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter worth $81,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 569 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter worth $170,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Materials Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:EXP opened at $217.10 on Friday. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.44 and a 1 year 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. The stock has a market cap of $7.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $239.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.11.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $3.59 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $330.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. DA Davidson decreased 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. Loop Capital cut Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.40.

Insider Transactions at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director Michael R. Nicolais acquired 310 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,655 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $940,650.80. This represents a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.