JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP) Stock Price

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Free Report) had its price objective cut by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $310.00 to $250.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the construction company's stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Eagle Materials from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Eagle Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $242.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Eagle Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $334.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $286.40.

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Eagle Materials Price Performance

Shares of Eagle Materials stock traded up $0.57 on Wednesday, hitting $217.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 640,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 307,572. Eagle Materials has a 52-week low of $205.44 and a 52-week high of $321.93. 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 fifty day moving average price of $238.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $266.15. The company has a market capitalization of $7.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56 and a beta of 1.37.

Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP - Get Free Report) 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Eagle Materials will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 is currently 7.14%.

Insider Activity

In other Eagle Materials news, Director Michael R. Nicolais bought 310 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $257.36 per share, with a total value of $79,781.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,655 shares in the company, valued at $940,650.80. This trade represents a 9.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Eagle Materials

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EXP. FMR LLC increased its position in Eagle Materials by 30.1% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position 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 worth $499,111,000 after purchasing an additional 652,836 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $93,672,000. Baupost Group LLC MA increased its position in Eagle Materials by 46.2% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Eagle Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,115,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% 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.