James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) Shares Gap Down to $39.32

Shares of James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $39.32, but opened at $38.37. James Hardie Industries shares last traded at $38.70, with a volume of 4,775 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lowered shares of James Hardie Industries from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $35.50 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of James Hardie Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $16.93 billion, a PE ratio of 32.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.89. The business's 50 day moving average is $38.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.89.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The construction company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.02. James Hardie Industries had a net margin of 13.93% and a return on equity of 38.75%. The business had revenue of $978.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $960.23 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.29 EPS. James Hardie Industries's revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that James Hardie Industries plc will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,002,215 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $38,756,000 after purchasing an additional 11,235 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 40.2% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 10,993 shares of the construction company's stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 3,154 shares during the last quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the 4th quarter worth $155,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of James Hardie Industries by 46.1% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,536 shares of the construction company's stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the 4th quarter worth $218,000. 7.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.