Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) Hits New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Huntington Ingalls Industries fell to a new 52-week low of $255.55, down from its prior close of $264.03, with the stock trading below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Despite the decline, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with a $364.62 average price target; five analysts rate the stock Buy and five rate it Hold.
• The company reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, including $5.27 in EPS and $3.42 billion in revenue, while maintaining a $1.38 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.1% yield.

Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $255.55 and last traded at $255.9540, with a volume of 125,850 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $264.03.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $341.00 to $327.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $349.00 to $379.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wolfe Research upgraded Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $364.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $364.62.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Down 2.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.23. The business's 50 day moving average is $289.13 and its 200-day moving average is $311.85.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $5.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.79 by $1.48. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 5.01%. The company had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.86 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 18.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 28th were paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 28th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.90%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Christopher Kastner sold 13,070 shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.92, for a total transaction of $4,246,704.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,224 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,646,902.08. This trade represents a 53.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Huntington Ingalls Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HII. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Bayban purchased a new position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.46% of the company's stock.

About Huntington Ingalls Industries

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc NYSE: HII is a U.S. defense company that designs, builds, maintains and modernizes military ships and provides technology services to government and defense customers. Its principal customers include the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, intelligence agencies and other federal organizations.

Through Newport News Shipbuilding, HII builds and services nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and supports the construction and maintenance of nuclear-powered submarines.

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