First Trust Advisors LP Sells 31,898 Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII)

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Free Report) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 435,665 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 31,898 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 1.11% of Huntington Ingalls Industries worth $82,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HII. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 503.8% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 43.4% during the fourth quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 156.4% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 482 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on HII shares. Barclays reduced their price target on Huntington Ingalls Industries from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $145.00 to $234.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $231.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Thomas C. Schievelbein bought 2,120 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $164.82 per share, with a total value of $349,418.40. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,313,120.94. This trade represents a 36.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Nicolas G. Schuck sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.56, for a total value of $142,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at $546,691.04. This represents a 20.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Price Performance

HII traded up $3.87 on Thursday, hitting $221.80. 822,318 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 517,977. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $158.88 and a 12 month high of $285.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.89, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50-day moving average of $197.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $201.29.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The aerospace company reported $3.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by ($0.13). Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 4.77%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 13.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Profile

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.