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

James Hardie Industries plc (NYSE:JHX) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,800 shares, a drop of 94.2% from the December 15th total of 170,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 90,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days.

James Hardie Industries Price Performance

Shares of James Hardie Industries stock traded up $0.36 on Monday, hitting $31.11. 165,737 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 101,262. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.56. James Hardie Industries has a 12-month low of $29.88 and a 12-month high of $43.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market cap of $13.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.80, a P/E/G ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 1.80.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The construction company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $960.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $973.49 million. James Hardie Industries had a return on equity of 35.93% and a net margin of 11.16%. James Hardie Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. Analysts expect that James Hardie Industries will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On James Hardie Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JHX. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of James Hardie Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in James Hardie Industries by 46.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,365 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank bought a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries during the third quarter valued at about $55,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in James Hardie Industries in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $64,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of James Hardie Industries during the second quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JHX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of James Hardie Industries in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of James Hardie Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut James Hardie Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.25.

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.