Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Strong-Buy" Rating

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) from a "buy" to a strong‑buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed—six Buy and six Hold ratings—yielding a MarketBeat average of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.22, with individual targets including $421 (Bernstein), $400 (Wells Fargo) and $441 (Citigroup after a cut).
• HII beat expectations last quarter with $4.04 EPS versus $3.72 expected and $3.48B revenue versus $3.09B expected (revenue +15.7% YoY); the stock recently opened around $359.78, with a market cap of $14.12B and a 12‑month range of $215.04–$460.00.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $421.00 price target on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Melius Research raised Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings raised Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $465.00 to $441.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.22.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Price Performance

Shares of HII opened at $359.78 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $404.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $368.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Huntington Ingalls Industries has a 12 month low of $215.04 and a 12 month high of $460.00.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The aerospace company reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.32. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 4.85%.The firm had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.15 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Huntington Ingalls Industries will post 17.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Huntington Ingalls Industries

In other news, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 4,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $422.45, for a total value of $1,858,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 20,360 shares in the company, valued at $8,601,082. This represents a 17.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Eric D. Chewning sold 1,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.44, for a total value of $736,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 1,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $844,774.56. This trade represents a 46.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Huntington Ingalls Industries

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 3.7% in the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 775 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,971 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $670,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 16.7% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 231 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Intrust Bank NA lifted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 821 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 2,205 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $750,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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