MetLife Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP)

MetLife Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE:EXP) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,516 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 815 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Eagle Materials were worth $5,326,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of EXP. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,032 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. grew its holdings in Eagle Materials by 4.4% in the third quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. now owns 1,022 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 0.6% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 9,644 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,097,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Eagle Materials by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 2,585 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $744,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Eagle Materials by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 15,405 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,431,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Eagle Materials from $277.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $315.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Eagle Materials from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Eagle Materials from $309.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Eagle Materials from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Eagle Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $307.11.

Insider Activity at Eagle Materials

In other Eagle Materials news, SVP Tony Thompson sold 1,401 shares of Eagle Materials stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.00, for a total value of $439,914.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,212 shares in the company, valued at $4,148,568. The trade was a 9.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Haack sold 11,888 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.50, for a total value of $3,691,224.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 85,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,644,315.50. This represents a 12.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,866 shares of company stock worth $5,482,931. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Eagle Materials stock opened at $308.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 2.34. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $296.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $260.25. The company has a market cap of $10.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.82 and a beta of 1.32. Eagle Materials Inc. has a one year low of $178.42 and a one year high of $321.93.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $4.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.75 by ($0.44). Eagle Materials had a net margin of 21.32% and a return on equity of 35.79%. The firm had revenue of $623.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $651.46 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Eagle Materials Inc. will post 15.24 EPS for the current year.

Eagle Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Eagle Materials’s payout ratio is presently 7.06%.

Eagle Materials 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.