Franklin Resources Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Howmet Aerospace Inc. $HWM

Key Points

• Franklin Resources increased its stake in Howmet Aerospace by 56.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 1,433,811 shares worth about $294 million.
• Howmet reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.22 versus $1.11 expected and revenue of $2.31 billion, up 19.1% year over year.
• Wall Street remains bullish on HWM, with analysts assigning a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $285.53, while some firms raised targets as high as $340.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM - Free Report) by 56.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,433,811 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 516,570 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.36% of Howmet Aerospace worth $293,960,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HWM. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 119.7% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 125 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 339.0% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 180 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Howmet Aerospace Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HWM opened at $256.77 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.44. Howmet Aerospace Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.51 and a fifty-two week high of $280.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.74 billion, a PE ratio of 59.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.19. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $251.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $232.74.

Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.11. Howmet Aerospace had a return on equity of 29.27% and a net margin of 20.23%.The business had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.86 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. Howmet Aerospace has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.880-5.000 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.220-1.240 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Howmet Aerospace Inc. will post 5.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Howmet Aerospace Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Howmet Aerospace's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Howmet Aerospace

In other news, EVP Neil Edward Marchuk sold 41,932 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.50, for a total transaction of $11,300,674.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 65,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,545,797.50. This trade represents a 39.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HWM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. BNP Paribas Exane restated an "outperform" rating and set a $340.00 target price (up from $265.00) on shares of Howmet Aerospace in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $271.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $285.53.

About Howmet Aerospace

Howmet Aerospace Inc is an industrial technology company that designs, manufactures and repairs engineered metal products for the aerospace, transportation and industrial markets. Its product portfolio includes precision castings and forgings, engineered fasteners, seamless rolled rings, and complex components for turbine engines, airframes and industrial gas turbines. The company also provides aftermarket services such as component repair, overhaul and parts distribution to support the operating fleet of commercial and military customers.

Howmet serves a global customer base of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and aftermarket operators, with manufacturing, service and distribution facilities across North America, Europe and Asia.

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