Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) Short Interest Up 26.1% in May

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,790,000 shares, an increase of 26.1% from the May 15th total of 1,420,000 shares. Approximately 4.6% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 645,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Huntington Ingalls Industries news, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 1,965 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.94, for a total value of $449,867.10. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 21,228 shares in the company, valued at $4,859,938.32. This trade represents a 8.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Anastasi D. Kelly sold 1,960 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.58, for a total transaction of $455,856.80. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,066,661.30. This represents a 10.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,225 shares of company stock worth $1,207,207 over the last three months. 0.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Huntington Ingalls Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 14,940 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,845,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 32.5% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $213,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries during the fourth quarter worth $407,000. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 77,286 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $14,605,000 after buying an additional 594 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries by 50.8% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 5,289 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,000,000 after buying an additional 1,781 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HII traded down $0.16 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $233.92. The stock had a trading volume of 519,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 547,491. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.34. The company has a market capitalization of $9.18 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.29. Huntington Ingalls Industries has a 1 year low of $158.88 and a 1 year high of $285.81.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The aerospace company reported $3.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.89. The firm had revenue of $2.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.80 billion. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a net margin of 4.76% and a return on equity of 12.26%. Huntington Ingalls Industries's revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.87 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Huntington Ingalls Industries will post 13.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's payout ratio is 38.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $236.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $200.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $236.38.

About Huntington Ingalls Industries

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc designs, builds, overhauls, and repairs military ships in the United States. It operates through three segments: Ingalls, Newport News, and Mission Technologies. The company is involved in the design and construction of non-nuclear ships comprising amphibious assault ships; expeditionary warfare ships; surface combatants; and national security cutters for the U.S.

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