Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE) from a "hold" to a "strong-buy."
• Analyst views are mixed — Weiss and Wall Street Zen raised ratings while Jefferies cut to "underperform," leaving MarketBeat's average rating at "Hold" with an average target price of $13.25.
• Shares opened at $15.52 (market cap $2.68B, P/E ~21.9); HE reported quarterly EPS of $0.24 (in line) on $805.8M revenue, and analysts expect FY EPS of 1.71.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Hawaiian Electric Industries from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $13.50 to $12.50 in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $13.25.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of HE opened at $15.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.32. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a 1 year low of $9.06 and a 1 year high of $17.38.

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

Institutional Trading of Hawaiian Electric Industries

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 199,800.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,999 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,998 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 142.2% in the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,325 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,365 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 242.2% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,940 shares during the period. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.91% of the company's stock.

About Hawaiian Electric Industries

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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