James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) shares saw strong trading volume on Monday . 1,211,758 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 195% from the previous session’s volume of 410,431 shares.The stock last traded at $22.36 and had previously closed at $22.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JHX has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of James Hardie Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley raised James Hardie Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America raised James Hardie Industries from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $27.40 to $27.35 in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Macquarie cut shares of James Hardie Industries from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, James Hardie Industries presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.45.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a P/E/G ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 1.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $28.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $953.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $967.63 million. James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 33.65% and a net margin of 11.15%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that James Hardie Industries plc will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of James Hardie Industries

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in James Hardie Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $293,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 262.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,286 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 2,380 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in James Hardie Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $1,100,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 67.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 51,074 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,051,000 after buying an additional 20,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of James Hardie Industries by 145.8% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 29,150 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,170,000 after acquiring an additional 17,290 shares in the last quarter. 7.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

James Hardie Industries Company Profile

James Hardie Industries plc manufactures and sells fiber cement, fiber gypsum, and cement bonded building products for interior and exterior building construction applications primarily in the United States, Australia, Europe, New Zealand, and the Philippines. The company operates through North America Fiber Cement, Asia Pacific Fiber Cement, and Europe Building Products segments.