Citigroup Inc. Buys 5,317,017 Shares of James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX)

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. significantly increased its stake in James Hardie Industries by 59,775.3%, now owning approximately 1.24% of the company worth $125 million after acquiring over 5.3 million additional shares.
• James Hardie recently reported a quarterly EPS of $0.36, missing expectations, with a revenue of $971.5 million, down 3.3% from the previous year.
• Equities analysts have given a consensus rating of "Buy" for James Hardie Industries, with an average price target of $36.67, suggesting a positive outlook for the stock's performance.

Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX - Free Report) by 59,775.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,325,912 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 5,317,017 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned about 1.24% of James Hardie Industries worth $125,478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JHX. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 98.0% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,049 shares of the construction company's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 2,499 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 5,220 shares of the construction company's stock worth $161,000 after purchasing an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 854.5% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 7,875 shares of the construction company's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 7,050 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 672.7% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 8,500 shares of the construction company's stock worth $200,000 after purchasing an additional 7,400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.96% of the company's stock.

James Hardie Industries Stock Performance

JHX traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $28.03. 4,338,154 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,335,927. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.05 billion, a PE ratio of 28.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.74. The company's 50-day moving average is $26.63 and its 200 day moving average is $27.06. James Hardie Industries PLC. has a 52 week low of $19.72 and a 52 week high of $43.57.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The construction company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $971.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $983.86 million. James Hardie Industries had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 31.52%. James Hardie Industries's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that James Hardie Industries PLC. will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on JHX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of James Hardie Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of James Hardie Industries from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of James Hardie Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research report on Friday, July 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research report on Friday. They set a "buy" rating and a $34.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.67.

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.