Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday.

OC has been the topic of several other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Owens Corning from $178.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays raised Owens Corning from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $192.00 to $245.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Owens Corning from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup cut 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, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Owens Corning from $224.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $207.00.

Owens Corning Stock Down 1.6 %

Owens Corning stock opened at $151.86 on Tuesday. Owens Corning has a 12 month low of $148.62 and a 12 month high of $214.53. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $175.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.46.

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The construction company reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.88 billion. Owens Corning had a return on equity of 25.82% and a net margin of 9.92%. Owens Corning’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.21 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Owens Corning will post 15.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Owens Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Owens Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.49%.

Insider Transactions at Owens Corning

In other news, insider Monaco Nicolas Del sold 1,750 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,635 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,140,490.95. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Gunner Smith sold 17,450 shares of Owens Corning stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total value of $3,336,265.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,866 shares in the company, valued at $3,606,990.54. This trade represents a 48.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Owens Corning

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Owens Corning in the 4th quarter valued at $208,519,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Owens Corning by 113.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 797,743 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $140,818,000 after purchasing an additional 424,786 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Owens Corning by 41.1% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,422,828 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $242,337,000 after purchasing an additional 414,770 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in shares of Owens Corning in the fourth quarter worth about $51,400,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Owens Corning during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,220,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.40% of the company’s stock.

About Owens Corning

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.