Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires Shares of 300,728 Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 300,728 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,220,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Owens Corning during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Owens Corning by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 176 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Owens Corning in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in shares of Owens Corning by 193.7% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Owens Corning during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 88.40% of the company’s stock.

Owens Corning Price Performance

Shares of Owens Corning stock opened at $140.20 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $151.87 and its 200 day moving average is $173.24. Owens Corning has a one year low of $123.41 and a one year high of $214.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market cap of $11.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.39.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The construction company reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.35. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 9.92%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Owens Corning will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Owens Corning Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Owens Corning’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.97, for a total value of $321,947.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,635 shares in the company, valued at $2,140,490.95. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on OC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Owens Corning in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $183.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Owens Corning from $215.00 to $179.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Owens Corning in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price target on Owens Corning from $212.00 to $207.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Owens Corning from $245.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $194.58.

Owens Corning Company Profile

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications.