James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday.

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of James Hardie Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

JHX opened at $31.79 on Tuesday. James Hardie Industries has a one year low of $29.24 and a one year high of $43.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.40.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 13th. The construction company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.03. James Hardie Industries had a net margin of 12.78% and a return on equity of 38.01%. The firm had revenue of $991.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that James Hardie Industries will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On James Hardie Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of James Hardie Industries by 55.7% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,045 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of James Hardie Industries by 46.3% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,365 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank bought a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries during the third quarter worth $55,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries during the second quarter worth $66,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries during the first quarter worth $71,000. 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.