William Blair Investment Management LLC Sells 172,997 Shares of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 29.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 413,188 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 172,997 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $101,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of EXP. FMR LLC increased its position in Eagle Materials by 30.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,801,257 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,093,432,000 after purchasing an additional 878,400 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Eagle Materials by 60.3% in the third 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 last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 158,171 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Eagle Materials during the fourth quarter worth $38,115,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Eagle Materials during the third quarter worth $34,846,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on EXP. Citigroup lowered shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $242.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Eagle Materials from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. 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. Finally, Loop Capital lowered shares of 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $292.40.

Eagle Materials Stock Performance

EXP stock opened at $216.80 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.76 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $240.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.09. The company has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49 and a beta of 1.37. Eagle Materials Inc. has a 1-year low of $205.44 and a 1-year high of $321.93.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last released 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 net margin of 20.91% and a return on equity of 34.14%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 14.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 14th. Shareholders 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 yield of 0.46%. Eagle Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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