Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) Short Interest Up 16.1% in November

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,800,000 shares, an increase of 16.1% from the October 31st total of 8,440,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,010,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Price Performance

Hawaiian Electric Industries stock traded down $0.16 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $10.19. 2,005,942 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,364,817. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.18. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.15. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a 12-month low of $7.61 and a 12-month high of $18.19.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.07). Hawaiian Electric Industries had a negative net margin of 35.38% and a positive return on equity of 11.12%. The business had revenue of $983.38 million during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. purchased a new position in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 156.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,503 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748 shares during the period. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries during the third quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 126.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 7,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 4,453 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Hawaiian Electric Industries in a report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating and a $11.50 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $14.00 to $11.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th.

About Hawaiian Electric Industries

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the electric utility businesses in the United States. It operates in three segments: Electric Utility, Bank, and Other. The Electric Utility segment engages in the production, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, and Molokai.