Private Advisory Group LLC Trims Position in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM)

Key Points

• Private Advisory Group LLC reduced its stake in Howmet Aerospace by 42.9%, selling 14,463 shares and retaining a total of 19,231 shares worth about $2.5 million.
• Howmet Aerospace recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share, up from $0.10, representing an annualized yield of 0.25%.
• The company reported an earnings per share of $0.86 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, while also demonstrating a 5.5% increase in quarterly revenue compared to the previous year.

Private Advisory Group LLC decreased its holdings in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM - Free Report) by 42.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,231 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,463 shares during the quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC's holdings in Howmet Aerospace were worth $2,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PFG Advisors raised its holdings in Howmet Aerospace by 37.9% during the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 9,593 shares of the company's stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 2,635 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 233.5% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 140,883 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,277,000 after purchasing an additional 98,642 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 126.1% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 24,207 shares of the company's stock worth $3,140,000 after acquiring an additional 13,500 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 65.4% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 673 shares of the company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 11.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 33,532 shares of the company's stock worth $4,350,000 after purchasing an additional 3,465 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on HWM shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Howmet Aerospace from $118.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $170.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Howmet Aerospace from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Vertical Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Howmet Aerospace in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $85.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $160.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO John C. Plant sold 800,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.96, for a total value of $125,568,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 236,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,127,946.24. This represents a 77.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Neil Edward Marchuk sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.53, for a total value of $4,755,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 131,859 shares in the company, valued at $20,903,607.27. This trade represents a 18.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

Howmet Aerospace Stock Performance

Howmet Aerospace stock traded down $2.10 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $182.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,769,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,088,318. Howmet Aerospace Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.39 and a 12-month high of $193.26. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $178.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.31. The company has a market capitalization of $73.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.32, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.48.

Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.99 billion. Howmet Aerospace had a net margin of 18.09% and a return on equity of 28.17%. Howmet Aerospace's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.67 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Howmet Aerospace Inc. will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Howmet Aerospace Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This is a positive change from Howmet Aerospace's previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Howmet Aerospace's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.04%.

About Howmet Aerospace

Howmet Aerospace Inc provides advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries in the United States, Japan, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Italy, Canada, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Engine Products, Fastening Systems, Engineered Structures, and Forged Wheels.