MM went long JHX in late October just before the building materials business downgraded its FY23 guidance by around 7%, another example of the vagaries of reporting season. However, the stock and sector appear to be slowly regaining their mojo after an annus horribilis and we still believe JHX has the right strategy to drive margin recovery through FY23. We have no doubt that the US construction industry is slowing down but we’re conscious that JHX was trading around $58 only 12 months ago i.e. there’s already plenty of bad news built into JHX’s share price.
- We’re still targeting the $35-37 area for JHX, or 16-18% higher. Our current position is down ~3%.