Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. Sells 1,120 Shares of Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN)

Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. cut its holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:BECN) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,980 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,120 shares during the period. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Beacon Roofing Supply were worth $506,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BECN. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Beacon Roofing Supply in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Beacon Roofing Supply during the fourth quarter worth $54,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in Beacon Roofing Supply by 38.1% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Beacon Roofing Supply by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Beacon Roofing Supply by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jonathan Stuart Bennett sold 8,487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.14, for a total value of $1,036,602.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 22,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,765,493.88. The trade was a 27.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher Carl Nelson sold 16,595 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.61, for a total value of $2,051,307.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 463 shares in the company, valued at $57,231.43. The trade was a 97.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,806 shares of company stock valued at $6,745,448. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BECN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Baird R W downgraded shares of Beacon Roofing Supply from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Beacon Roofing Supply from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $124.00 to $124.35 in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $124.35 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Beacon Roofing Supply in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Beacon Roofing Supply in a report on Monday, May 12th. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Beacon Roofing Supply from $120.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Beacon Roofing Supply presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.78.

Beacon Roofing Supply Stock Performance

NASDAQ BECN opened at $124.17 on Monday. Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc. has a one year low of $77.54 and a one year high of $124.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.91. The company has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.23 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $123.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $114.82.

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

Beacon Roofing Supply Profile

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.