J.P. Morgan downgrades building product firms on inflationary pressures

Jeld-Wen Holding

20/12/2022 12:22

** J.P. Morgan downgrades construction materials co Owens
Corning  OC.N  to "underweight" from "neutral" and home
appliances maker Whirlpool Corp  WHR.N  to "neutral" from
"overweight"
    ** Cuts PT for OC to $79 from $85 and for WHR to $35 from
$145
    ** Brokerage sees macroeconomic headwinds including
softening housing market, exposure to European markets and cost
inflation to persist for the next 6-9 months 
    ** Says OC's risks to profit margins include its above
average exposure to Europe (at 14%) and is likely to
underperform industry peers
    ** "Investor concerns regarding the sustainability of North
American profit margins will continue to impact valuation" - JPM
on WHR
    ** Brokerage, however, upgrades building products maker
JELD-WEN Holding Inc  JELD.N  to "neutral" from "underweight" on
in-line performance with industry peers 
    ** Shares of OC and WHR down 1.4% and 1.1%, respectively,
while JELD is up 1.2% premarket, in light trading
    ** Up to Monday's close, OC, WHR and JELD had fallen 3.1%,
40.5% and 63.2% YTD, respectively
 (Reporting by Shristi  Achar A in Bengaluru)
 ((Shristi.AcharA@thomsonreuters.com;))