Howard Hughes (NYSE:HHH) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Howard Hughes from sell to hold, even though recent analyst sentiment remains cautious overall. The stock now has an average rating of Reduce and an average target price of $85.
• Howard Hughes reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $0.14 versus the $0.08 consensus estimate. Revenue rose 18.4% year over year to $235.92 million.
• Despite the upgrade, the stock has drawn mixed signals from other analysts and traded around $65.86, near its 52-week low of $61.01. Insider and institutional ownership remain significant, with insiders holding 48% and hedge funds and other institutions owning 93.83%.

Howard Hughes (NYSE:HHH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Howard Hughes from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Howard Hughes from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $85.00.

Howard Hughes Stock Performance

NYSE HHH opened at $65.86 on Friday. Howard Hughes has a 52-week low of $61.01 and a 52-week high of $91.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.29 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $65.11 and a 200-day moving average of $76.24.

Howard Hughes (NYSE:HHH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.06. Howard Hughes had a net margin of 8.04% and a return on equity of 5.43%. The company had revenue of $235.92 million during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.21 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Howard Hughes will post 3.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Joseph Valane acquired 1,260 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $64.45 per share, for a total transaction of $81,207.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 29,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,882,520.05. The trade was a 4.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 48.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Howard Hughes

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Howard Hughes in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Howard Hughes by 41.5% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 423 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Howard Hughes by 191.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 516 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of Howard Hughes by 134.1% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 494 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Howard Hughes in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.83% of the company's stock.

Howard Hughes Company Profile

Howard Hughes Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate development company in the United States. It operates in four segments: Operating Assets; Master Planned Communities (MPCs); Seaport; and Strategic Developments. The Operating Assets segment consists of developed or acquired retail, office, and multi-family properties along with other retail investments. Its MPCs segment develops, sells, and leases residential and commercial land designated for long-term community development projects in and around Las Vegas, Nevada; Houston, Texas; and Phoenix, Arizona.

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