James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX) Stock Short Interest Rises 70.5%

James Hardie Industries PLC. (NYSE:JHX) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 25,901,156 shares, an increase of 70.5% from the September 15th total of 15,189,864 shares. Currently, 4.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 18,436,803 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on JHX shares. Zacks Research downgraded James Hardie Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of James Hardie Industries in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Barclays upgraded shares of James Hardie Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $35.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of James Hardie Industries in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of James Hardie Industries in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.89.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On James Hardie Industries

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in JHX. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new position in James Hardie Industries during the first quarter valued at $28,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new stake in James Hardie Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in James Hardie Industries by 21.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 787 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in James Hardie Industries by 46.5% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,532 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 1,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in James Hardie Industries during the second quarter valued at approximately $131,000. 7.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

James Hardie Industries Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of JHX stock traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $25.85. 7,126,951 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,766,907. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $27.92 and its 200-day moving average is $24.80. The company has a market cap of $15.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. James Hardie Industries has a fifty-two week low of $16.46 and a fifty-two week high of $31.43.

James Hardie Industries (NYSE:JHX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The construction company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.04. James Hardie Industries had a net margin of 2.69% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.29 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that James Hardie Industries will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About James Hardie Industries

James Hardie Industries plc is a building materials company that manufactures and markets fiber cement and fiber gypsum products. Its products are used primarily in residential and commercial construction, including exterior siding, trim, soffits, backer board, and interior wall and flooring applications.

The company sells products under brands that include Hardie, HardiePlank, HardiePanel, and HardieBacker. Its fiber cement products are designed to provide durability and resistance to moisture, fire, pests, and weathering, serving builders, contractors, architects, and homeowners.

James Hardie traces its origins to Australia in the late 19th century and has since expanded into an international building products company.