James Hardie Industries plc (ASX: JHX) is an ASX 200 materials stock that has had a tough year.
The company is a global leading producer and marketer of fibre cement building products. It is also a major supplier of fibre gypsum and cement-bonded boards in Europe.
This week, the company had two key announcements concerning its leadership.
First, the appointment of Ryan Lada as the Company's Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Lada succeeds Rachel Wilson, who has decided to step down after two years in her role.
Second, the appointment of Nigel Stein as Chair of the James Hardie Board of Directors.
Despite the change in leadership, this ASX 200 stock continued to see its share price fall.
In the last month, its share price is down almost 20%.
This includes a drop of almost 4% yesterday.
Its share price is down almost 52% in the last year.
Image source: Getty Images
Time to buy low?
After falling significantly this past year, the team at Morgans seems to believe this ASX 200 stock now offers significant upside.
In a note out of the broker yesterday, it said the 2QFY26 results were incrementally more positive than previously anticipated.
Morgans said an upgraded guidance reflects a c.6% organic decline (vs pcp), as a challenging environment sees volume declines exceed price increases.
However, this is better than feared and may prove to be a bottoming in the cycle as demand stabilises.
JHX is trading on c.17.1x FY26F as the business navigates its acquisition missteps, earnings downgrades and a challenging consumer environment in North America (NA). However, at EPS of c.U$1.04/sh in FY26 we see upside from both earnings and an undemanding PER (ave PER. 20x).
Target price upside for this ASX 200 stock
Based on this guidance, the broker has a buy recommendation and $35.50 target price.
From yesterday's closing price of $26.91, this indicates an upside of 31.92%.
Morgans aren't the only broker suggesting this ASX 200 stock is undervalued.
Yesterday, the Motley Fool's Samantha Menzies reported that Macquarie has upgraded its 12-month price target to $41.70 (previously $40.60).
This indicates more than 50% upside.
