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

Shares of James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 2,258,908 shares traded hands 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

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial cut their target price on James Hardie Industries from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley raised James Hardie Industries from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Raymond James set a $55.00 target price on James Hardie Industries in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America raised James Hardie Industries from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their target price for the company from $27.40 to $27.35 in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded James Hardie Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $39.12.

James Hardie Industries Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $10.02 billion, a PE ratio of 23.07, a PEG ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 1.80.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $971.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $983.86 million. James Hardie Industries had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 33.65%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that James Hardie Industries plc will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 12.1% in the first quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,683 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 18,074 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings 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 valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 453 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 9,695 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the period. 7.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.