UPDATE: J.P. Morgan Upgrades Armstrong World Industries As ValueAct Creates New Floor In Stock

In a report published Monday, J.P. Morgan analyst Michael Rehaut upgraded the rating on Armstrong World Industries (NYSE: AWI) from Underweight to Neutral, and raised the price target from $49.00 to $56.50.

In the report, J.P. Morgan noted, “We rate AWI Neutral, as while activist investor ValueAct's recently disclosed 16.8% stake will likely result in a new floor for AWI, at the same time, our SOTP analysis points to only modest incremental upside from current levels. Moreover, as we believe that management has already been fairly active in terms of exploring ways to unlock additional shareholder value, we do not necessarily see material incremental benefits that ValueAct may be able to provide to AWI's already active strategies.”

Armstrong World Industries closed on Friday at $52.99.