Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) Stock Price

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) had its price objective cut by equities researchers at Citigroup from $465.00 to $441.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. Citigroup’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 12.10% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. TD Cowen raised their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $421.00 price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $383.22.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Performance

Shares of HII stock traded up $0.09 on Thursday, hitting $393.41. 96,061 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 569,929. The company’s fifty day moving average is $416.64 and its 200 day moving average is $353.59. Huntington Ingalls Industries has a 1-year low of $177.42 and a 1-year high of $460.00. The company has a market capitalization of $15.44 billion, a PE ratio of 25.60, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The aerospace company reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a net margin of 4.85% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Huntington Ingalls Industries will post 13.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Huntington Ingalls Industries news, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.45, for a total transaction of $1,858,780.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 20,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,601,082. The trade was a 17.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Eric D. Chewning sold 1,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.44, for a total transaction of $736,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $844,774.56. This represents a 46.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Huntington Ingalls Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 38,526.6% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,986,567 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $675,572,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,424 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 32.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,646,733 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $560,004,000 after buying an additional 400,428 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,116,501 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $379,098,000 after buying an additional 56,618 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 85.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,085,619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $369,186,000 after acquiring an additional 498,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 978,365 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $332,717,000 after acquiring an additional 11,743 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.46% of the company’s stock.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Company Profile

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE: HII) is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a leading provider of professional services to the U.S. government. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII designs, constructs and maintains nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, submarines and other complex vessels for the U.S. Navy. The company’s products include nuclear aircraft carriers, Virginia-class and Columbia-class submarines, as well as amphibious assault ships, destroyers and cutters.

Established in 2011 as a spin-off from Northrop Grumman’s shipbuilding operations, HII traces its heritage to two historic builders: Newport News Shipbuilding, founded in the 19th century, and Ingalls Shipbuilding, founded in 1938.