Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. $HII Shares Purchased by Ameritas Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 381.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 10,555 shares valued at about $3.59 million. Other institutional investors also made smaller additions, and institutions now own 90.46% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Weiss Ratings downgraded HII to hold, while several firms kept or raised buy targets. Overall, the stock carries a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $383.22.
• Huntington Ingalls reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter, with EPS of $3.79 and revenue of $3.10 billion, both topping estimates. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share, payable June 12, for an annualized yield of 1.7%.

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Free Report) by 381.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,555 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,362 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries were worth $3,589,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in HII. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,971 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $670,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 16.7% during the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 231 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 2,205 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $750,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 3.9% in the third quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, 1834 Investment Advisors Co. grew its position in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. now owns 2,535 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $730,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $465.00 to $441.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $384.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Bank of America upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $383.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 4,400 shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.45, for a total value of $1,858,780.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 20,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,601,082. This trade represents a 17.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at 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 shares were 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 owned 1,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $844,774.56. This trade represents a 46.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Price Performance

NYSE HII opened at $333.83 on Thursday. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.04 and a 1 year high of $460.00. The business's fifty day moving average is $387.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $371.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.19.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.09. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 12.05% and a net margin of 4.71%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.79 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 17.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

About Huntington Ingalls Industries

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.

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