James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 2,258,908 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 226% from the previous session’s volume of 693,506 shares.The stock last traded at $22.11 and had previously closed at $23.20.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial reduced their target price on James Hardie Industries from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Raymond James set a $55.00 price target on James Hardie Industries in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded James Hardie Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded James Hardie Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, James Hardie Industries currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.12.

James Hardie Industries Stock Down 5.0%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $23.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.77. The company has a market cap of $9.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.18.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The construction company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.01). James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 33.65% and a net margin of 11.15%. The firm had revenue of $971.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $983.86 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that James Hardie Industries plc will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of James Hardie Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in James Hardie Industries by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 972 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 12.1% during the first quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,683 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 18,074 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 5,220 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 9,695 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 7.96% of the company’s stock.

About James Hardie Industries

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.