James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 49,800 shares, a decline of 38.7% from the January 31st total of 81,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 90,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on JHX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised James Hardie Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of James Hardie Industries in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Truist Financial began coverage on James Hardie Industries in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded James Hardie Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

James Hardie Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:JHX traded up $0.30 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $31.76. 71,700 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 91,615. The company has a market cap of $13.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.44, a P/E/G ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.18. James Hardie Industries has a one year low of $29.88 and a one year high of $43.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $32.43 and a 200 day moving average of $34.42.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $953.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $967.63 million. James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 33.65% and a net margin of 11.15%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that James Hardie Industries will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 63.6% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 8,694 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 3,381 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC bought a new position in James Hardie Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $401,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 63,915 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,969,000 after acquiring an additional 5,339 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 19,561 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $603,000 after acquiring an additional 2,524 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 964,583 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,718,000 after acquiring an additional 161,059 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 7.96% of the company’s stock.

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.