Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts are cautious on HII: Huntington Ingalls Industries has a consensus rating of “Hold” from 11 covering analysts, with seven hold ratings and four buy ratings. The average 12-month price target is $388.50.
• Recent earnings beat expectations: The company reported quarterly EPS of $3.79, topping estimates, and revenue of $3.10 billion, also above consensus. Revenue rose 13.4% year over year.
• Dividend and stock details: HII recently paid a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share, or $5.52 annualized, for a yield of about 2.0%. The stock opened at $281.28 and remains well below its 52-week high of $460.00.

Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the eleven research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $388.50.

A number of research firms have issued reports on HII. Wall Street Zen downgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $441.00 to $405.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Performance

NYSE:HII opened at $281.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $11.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.23. Huntington Ingalls Industries has a fifty-two week low of $236.65 and a fifty-two week high of $460.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $320.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $369.20.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.02 billion. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a net margin of 4.71% and a return on equity of 12.05%. Huntington Ingalls Industries's revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.79 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Huntington Ingalls Industries will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.91%.

Insider Activity at Huntington Ingalls Industries

In other news, VP Edmond E. Jr. Hughes sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.58, for a total value of $1,118,530.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,681,595.78. This trade represents a 29.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Huntington Ingalls Industries

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 38,526.6% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,986,567 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $675,572,000 after buying an additional 1,981,424 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 32.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,646,733 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $560,004,000 after buying an additional 400,428 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,116,501 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $379,098,000 after buying an additional 56,618 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 85.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,085,619 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $369,186,000 after buying an additional 498,690 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 978,365 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $332,717,000 after purchasing an additional 11,743 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Company Profile

Huntington Ingalls Industries NYSE: HII is America's largest military shipbuilding company and a leading provider of professional services to the U.S. government. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII designs, constructs and maintains nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, submarines and other complex vessels for the U.S. Navy. The company's products include nuclear aircraft carriers, Virginia-class and Columbia-class submarines, as well as amphibious assault ships, destroyers and cutters.

Established in 2011 as a spin-off from Northrop Grumman's shipbuilding operations, HII traces its heritage to two historic builders: Newport News Shipbuilding, founded in the 19th century, and Ingalls Shipbuilding, founded in 1938.

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