Earnest Partners LLC Acquires 204,376 Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII)

Earnest Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Free Report) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 831,965 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 204,376 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC owned approximately 2.13% of Huntington Ingalls Industries worth $157,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HII. River Road Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Huntington Ingalls Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,215,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 132.9% during the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 420,102 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $79,387,000 after buying an additional 239,688 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries during the fourth quarter worth $36,191,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,881,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 445,926 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $84,269,000 after purchasing an additional 109,134 shares during the period. 90.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Price Performance

HII stock traded up $2.26 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $229.74. The company had a trading volume of 403,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 524,387. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.88 and a 1-year high of $285.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $202.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $200.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $9.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.34.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The aerospace company reported $3.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.89. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The business had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.87 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 13.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on HII shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $236.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $234.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Huntington Ingalls Industries

In related news, CAO Nicolas G. Schuck sold 750 shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.56, for a total transaction of $142,170.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,691.04. The trade was a 20.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas C. Schievelbein acquired 2,120 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $164.82 per share, with a total value of $349,418.40. Following the purchase, the director now owns 7,967 shares in the company, valued at $1,313,120.94. The trade was a 36.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Company Profile

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc designs, builds, overhauls, and repairs military ships in the United States. It operates through three segments: Ingalls, Newport News, and Mission Technologies. The company is involved in the design and construction of non-nuclear ships comprising amphibious assault ships; expeditionary warfare ships; surface combatants; and national security cutters for the U.S.