U.S. housing market remains uncertain—James Hardie

Despite improved profits due to stronger sales prices and volumes, materials giant James Hardie said that the home building sector is still standing on shaky ground

With a possible recession sending shivers among investors and the slow recovery of the home building sector, the future of the U.S. housing market seems uncertain, according to leading materials supplier James Hardie.
 
This despite a 16% growth in its profits during the third quarter (ending on December 31 last year), with stronger prices boosting larger sales volume in the company’s fiber cement building products.
 
“Market conditions remain somewhat uncertain and some input costs remain volatile,” James Hardie officials said in a statement, as quoted by The Sydney Morning Herald.
 
James Hardie shares went up by 3.6% ($17.27) on Friday (February 19). Q3 net sales amounted to $413.9 million, and net profits sat at $56.2 million, most of which were earned in the United States.
 
“This was a solid result that we would view as largely in-line with expectations,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Andrew Scott observed.
 
The company said that its full-year adjusted net profit hovered between $240 million and $250 million.