Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank significantly reduced its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 70.3%, owning 6,996 shares valued at $1,427,000 post-sale.
• In the first quarter, several institutional investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and Auto Owners Insurance Co, greatly increased their holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries, showcasing a trend of rising interest from large funds.
• Huntington Ingalls Industries is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share on September 12, indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its position in Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Free Report) by 70.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,996 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 16,565 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries were worth $1,427,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 5,154 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $974,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,420 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,213,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,048,482 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $197,677,000 after purchasing an additional 29,670 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,414 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,968,000 after buying an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 581 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. 90.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE HII traded up $5.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $270.93. 582,700 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 511,111. The company has a market cap of $10.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.33. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $158.88 and a twelve month high of $293.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $243.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.68.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The aerospace company reported $3.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.63. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a net margin of 4.54% and a return on equity of 11.34%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.38 EPS. The company's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 13.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 1,965 shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.94, for a total value of $449,867.10. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 21,228 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,859,938.32. The trade was a 8.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Edmond E. Jr. Hughes sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.91, for a total transaction of $301,483.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 9,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,221,929.71. This trade represents a 11.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Alembic Global Advisors raised shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. TD Cowen raised shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $236.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $235.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Huntington Ingalls Industries presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $258.88.

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.