Beacon Roofing Supply (NASDAQ:BECN) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Shares of Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN) saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 6,999,266 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 800% from the previous session’s volume of 777,486 shares.The stock last traded at $123.82 and had previously closed at $121.53.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on BECN. StockNews.com began coverage on Beacon Roofing Supply in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Zelman & Associates lowered Beacon Roofing Supply from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Beacon Roofing Supply in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Beacon Roofing Supply in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Beacon Roofing Supply from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $131.00 to $122.55 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.95.

Beacon Roofing Supply Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $117.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.62 billion, a PE ratio of 21.16 and a beta of 1.63.

Beacon Roofing Supply (NASDAQ:BECN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.01). Beacon Roofing Supply had a return on equity of 25.32% and a net margin of 3.86%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. Research analysts expect that Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. will post 7.22 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 7,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $734,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 720 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply by 38.1% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 591 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Beacon Roofing Supply

Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution of residential and non-residential roofing materials, and complementary building products to contractors, home builders, building owners, lumberyards, and retailers in the United States and Canada. The company offers pitched roofing and low slope roof products; gutters and sidings; building materials, such as lumber and composite, skylights and window, plywood and OSB, decking and railing, and HVAC products; and foam board, spray foam, roll, batt, mineral wool, fiberglass, and commercial insulation products, as well as radiant barriers and blown-in insulation and equipment.