James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) Sees Strong Trading Volume - Here's Why

James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) shares saw strong trading volume on Monday . 3,528,161 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 135% from the previous session's volume of 1,499,666 shares.The stock last traded at $27.86 and had previously closed at $28.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial set a $55.00 target price on James Hardie Industries in a report on Monday, March 24th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective 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. Bank of America raised James Hardie Industries from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $27.40 to $27.35 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley raised James Hardie Industries from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Macquarie downgraded James Hardie Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, James Hardie Industries presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $39.12.

James Hardie Industries Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.75. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $25.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.90.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 31.52%. The firm had revenue of $971.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $983.86 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that James Hardie Industries PLC. will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of James Hardie Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in James Hardie Industries by 59,775.3% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 5,325,912 shares of the construction company's stock worth $125,478,000 after buying an additional 5,317,017 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in James Hardie Industries during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $90,526,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in James Hardie Industries during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $87,858,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 160.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,697,663 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $63,557,000 after buying an additional 1,662,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of James Hardie Industries by 5,001.3% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 997,875 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $23,510,000 after purchasing an additional 978,314 shares during the last quarter. 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.