Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Boosts Stock Holdings in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings in shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,609 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 506 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $2,618,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of EXP. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 78.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,948 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $10,915,000 after acquiring an additional 16,645 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $8,890,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Eagle Materials by 242.4% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 5,514 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 60.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,735,133 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $499,111,000 after buying an additional 652,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,115,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $330.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Eagle Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Eagle Materials from $280.00 to $245.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Eagle Materials in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $242.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Eagle Materials from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $279.40.

Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EXP opened at $217.54 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $7.24 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s fifty day moving average is $233.13 and its 200 day moving average is $264.01. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 52 week low of $205.44 and a 52 week high of $321.93.

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

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Eagle Materials

In other news, Director Michael R. Nicolais purchased 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following 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 position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.