Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $334.84 and last traded at $332.0090, with a volume of 106240 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $322.63.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HII. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $362.00 target price on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in a report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $287.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup initiated coverage on Huntington Ingalls Industries in a report on Friday, December 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $376.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $316.00 to $356.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Huntington Ingalls Industries currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $325.75.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Up 2.5%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $307.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $276.57.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The aerospace company reported $3.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.29 by $0.39. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 11.79% and a net margin of 4.74%.The business had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 13.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. This is a boost from Huntington Ingalls Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Huntington Ingalls Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 38.12%.

Insider Transactions at Huntington Ingalls Industries

In related news, CAO Nicolas G. Schuck sold 466 shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.36, for a total value of $146,491.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $760,122.48. This trade represents a 16.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Chad N. Boudreaux sold 787 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.17, for a total transaction of $247,251.79. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 20,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,421,948.97. This represents a 3.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 17,103 shares of company stock worth $5,477,768. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Huntington Ingalls Industries

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 140.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 108 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. SouthState Corp lifted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 310.0% in the 2nd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 123 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 120.0% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.46% of the company’s stock.

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.