Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• As of August 31, Hawaiian Electric Industries saw a 21.9% increase in short interest, totaling 8,190,000 shares, which represents 4.8% of the company's shares short sold.
• Institutional investors own approximately 59.91% of Hawaiian Electric Industries, with significant increases in stake from multiple firms, including a 910.7% boost by Mad River Investors.
• The company reported earnings of $0.20 EPS for the quarter, falling short of analyst estimates by $0.04 amid a negative net margin of 3.66%.

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,190,000 shares, a growth of 21.9% from the August 15th total of 6,720,000 shares. Approximately 4.8% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days. Approximately 4.8% of the company's shares are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HE. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 28.6% in the 2nd quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 16,281,709 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $173,075,000 after purchasing an additional 3,624,709 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 165.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,043,726 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $19,885,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274,119 shares during the last quarter. Mad River Investors lifted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 910.7% in the 1st quarter. Mad River Investors now owns 1,215,900 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $13,314,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095,600 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the first quarter valued at approximately $8,359,000. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries during the first quarter worth $6,905,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on HE shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.00 to $11.25 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $11.94.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Price Performance

HE stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $12.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,494,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,064,485. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a 1-year low of $8.14 and a 1-year high of $13.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $11.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.06 and a beta of 0.69.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.04). Hawaiian Electric Industries had a negative net margin of 3.66% and a positive return on equity of 10.76%. The firm had revenue of $746.39 million during the quarter. Equities research analysts expect that Hawaiian Electric Industries will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

About Hawaiian Electric Industries

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the electric utility businesses in the United States. It operates in three segments: Electric Utility, Bank, and Other. The Electric Utility segment engages in the production, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, and Molokai.

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