Calamos Advisors LLC Acquires 207,567 Shares of James Hardie Industries PLC. $JHX

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC increased its stake in James Hardie Industries by 26.4% in the first quarter, buying 207,567 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 993,270 shares worth about $18.8 million.
• Other institutional investors also added to or initiated positions in JHX, and institutions now own 7.96% of the company.
• Analysts remain mixed but generally positive on the stock, with an average Moderate Buy rating and a consensus price target of $27.00; the shares recently traded at $25.75 after the company posted better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $0.30.

Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX - Free Report) by 26.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 993,270 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 207,567 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.23% of James Hardie Industries worth $18,813,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the first quarter worth $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 14.7% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 6,890 shares of the construction company's stock worth $130,000 after acquiring an additional 884 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of James Hardie Industries by 840.0% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 214,417 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,471,000 after purchasing an additional 191,606 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank purchased a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the 4th quarter valued at $107,000. Institutional investors own 7.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on JHX shares. Stephens started coverage on James Hardie Industries in a report on Thursday, June 25th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research lowered James Hardie Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on James Hardie Industries from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $27.00.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

JHX opened at $25.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $23.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.43. James Hardie Industries PLC. has a 12-month low of $16.46 and a 12-month high of $29.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 117.03 and a beta of 1.77.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The construction company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.41 billion. James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 11.13% and a net margin of 2.15%.James Hardie Industries's revenue for the quarter was up 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. Equities analysts predict that James Hardie Industries PLC. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

James Hardie Industries Company Profile

James Hardie Industries plc NYSE: JHX is a global manufacturer of high-performance fiber cement building products. The company specializes in exterior cladding, trim and soffit, as well as interior backerboard solutions designed for residential and commercial construction. By combining cement, sand and cellulose fibers, James Hardie produces durable, low-maintenance materials that resist moisture, fire and termite damage, catering to builders, contractors and homeowners through a network of distributors and retail channels.

The company's flagship products include Hardie® Plank® and Hardie® Panel® siding systems, Hardie® BackerBoard® for tile applications, and a range of architectural trim solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.