James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $42.45.

Several brokerages have commented on JHX. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of James Hardie Industries in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of James Hardie Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com upgraded James Hardie Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Macquarie downgraded James Hardie Industries from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

NYSE JHX opened at $24.24 on Monday. James Hardie Industries has a 1 year low of $23.23 and a 1 year high of $43.57. The business’s fifty day moving average is $31.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.00, a P/E/G ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 1.84. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.01. James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 33.65% and a net margin of 11.15%. The company had revenue of $953.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $967.63 million. On average, research analysts forecast that James Hardie Industries will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On James Hardie Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 5.2% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 41,798 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,678,000 after acquiring an additional 2,060 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in James Hardie Industries by 67.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 51,074 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,051,000 after purchasing an additional 20,496 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in James Hardie Industries by 58.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 37,771 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,517,000 after purchasing an additional 13,981 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 160,273 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,435,000 after purchasing an additional 29,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $227,000. Hedge funds and other 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.