Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest fell 15.7% in March to 17,300,701 shares (about 10% of shares short), leaving a days-to-cover ratio of roughly 6.4 days.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed with a MarketBeat consensus of "Hold" and a $13.25 target — notable moves include Jefferies cutting to underperform while Zacks upgraded to strong-buy.
• The stock traded at $15.81 (+0.3%), has a $2.73B market cap and a PE of 22.27; quarterly EPS of $0.24 matched estimates and analysts forecast about $1.71 in EPS for the fiscal year.

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE - Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 17,300,701 shares, a decline of 15.7% from the March 15th total of 20,532,632 shares. Approximately 10.0% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,710,632 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $13.50 to $12.50 in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HE. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 199,800.0% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,999 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,998 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 142.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,325 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,365 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 242.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,940 shares during the period. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 59.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:HE traded up $0.05 on Friday, reaching $15.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,089,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,863,491. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a 1-year low of $10.03 and a 1-year high of $17.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a PE ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.55. The business's 50-day moving average price is $15.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.49.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.24. The firm had revenue of $805.82 million for the quarter. Hawaiian Electric Industries had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 9.82%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hawaiian Electric Industries will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Company Profile

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc is a diversified holding company operating in the energy and financial services sectors in the state of Hawaii. Its principal subsidiary, Hawaiian Electric Company, provides generation, transmission, distribution and customer service to the island of Oahu, while its Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light Company subsidiaries serve Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii Island. The roots of the electric utility business trace back to 1891 when service first commenced in Honolulu.

Through its subsidiary Hawaii Gas, HEI extends its energy portfolio to include the distribution of natural gas and propane, supporting residential, commercial and industrial customers across the islands.

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