Should I Buy NX? NX 2026 Analysis

Should You Buy Quanex Building Products Corp (NX) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Conclusion

Hold

Latest Price

18.720

1 Day change

0.27%

52 Week Range

23.720

Analysis Updated At

2026/01/30

NX is not a good buy right now for an impatient buyer. The chart has some bullish structure (short- and medium-term MAs above the long-term MA), but momentum is deteriorating (negative, expanding MACD histogram) and there are no clear catalysts (no news, neutral flows). With the stock sitting just below the pivot (~18.77) and elevated uncertainty reflected in options IV, the risk/reward is not compelling for an immediate entry; I would wait rather than buy today.

Technical Analysis

Trend/momentum: Moving averages are constructive (SMA_5 > SMA_20 > SMA_200), which suggests the broader trend is still upward. However, MACD histogram is negative (-0.0452) and expanding, signaling weakening momentum and rising downside pressure in the near term. RSI_6 at 61.5 is neutral-to-slightly-strong, but not an oversold 'buy now' condition. Levels: Pre-market price 18.67 is below the pivot (18.771). Near-term support sits at S1 18.163 (then S2 17.788). Near-term resistance is R1 19.378 (then R2 19.753). A clean reclaim/hold above ~18.77 would improve the immediate setup; a slip toward 18.16 would imply a poorer entry for an impatient buyer. Intellectia Proprietary Trading Signals: - [AI Stock Picker](module://ai_stock_pick): No signal on given stock today. - [SwingMax](module://swingmax): No signal on given stock today.

Options Data

Bullish

Open Interest Put-Call Ratio

Bullish

Option Volume Put-Call Ratio

Sentiment: OI put-call of 0.71 leans moderately bullish/less hedged than bearish. However, options trading activity is extremely light (only 9 call contracts, 0 puts), so the signal quality is low. Volatility/pricing: 30D implied vol is very high (101.63) with IV percentile 98.4, indicating the market is pricing large potential moves/uncertainty; this typically reduces the attractiveness of initiating new bullish exposure without a catalyst and makes option premiums expensive.

Technical Summary

Sell

Buy

Positive Catalysts

mildly supports a constructive bias (though volume is thin).

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

showed revenue slightly down and sharp declines in net income and EPS, which can cap upside until earnings power stabilizes. No recent news/catalysts to drive an immediate re-rating. Options market implies elevated uncertainty (very high IV), which often coincides with unstable near-term price action. Hedge fund and insider trading trends are neutral (no supportive accumulation signal). No recent congress trading data and no influential-figure trades identified here.

Financial Performance

Latest quarter: 2025/Q4. Revenue was 489.846M (-0.47% YoY), indicating flat-to-slight contraction. Profitability deteriorated materially: Net income 19.571M (-240.63% YoY) and EPS 0.43 (-243.33% YoY), pointing to significant earnings pressure versus the prior year. The bright spot was gross margin improvement (22.85, +25.34% YoY), but the bottom-line drop suggests costs/other items are still weighing on results and makes the stock harder to buy aggressively without a clear turnaround signal.

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

Recent change: On 2025-12-15, Benchmark kept a Buy rating but cut its price target to $28 from $30 and lowered FY26/FY27 EPS estimates, citing an uncertain outlook and a more challenged first half before improvement later. Wall Street pros: still a Buy and expects longer-term upside (implied by the $28 target vs 18.67), with potential back-half improvement. Cons: target cut and estimate reductions highlight near-term earnings uncertainty; for an impatient strategy, that uncertainty + weakening momentum argues against buying immediately.

1 Analyst Rating

Wall Street analysts forecast NX stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for NX is 28 USD with a low forecast of 28 USD and a high forecast of 28 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.

1 Buy

0 Hold

0 Sell

Moderate Buy

Current: 18.670

Low

Averages

High

Current: 18.670

Low

Averages

High

Benchmark

analyst

Buy

maintain

$30 -> $28

AI Analysis

2025-12-15

Reason