Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 9,634 Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 139,248 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 9,634 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.36% of Huntington Ingalls Industries worth $36,812,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Huntington Ingalls Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Huntington Ingalls Industries in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Huntington Ingalls Industries during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries by 78.3% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 189 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.46% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Huntington Ingalls Industries

In other news, VP D R. Wyatt sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.24, for a total value of $82,096.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 19,627 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,028,245.48. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries stock traded up $2.05 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $192.46. The stock had a trading volume of 142,010 shares, compared to its average volume of 370,068. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.55. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $184.29 and a 52 week high of $299.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $209.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $242.81.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The aerospace company reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.84 by ($1.28). The business had revenue of $2.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. Huntington Ingalls Industries had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 5.99%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. will post 14.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. This is a boost from Huntington Ingalls Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Huntington Ingalls Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on HII shares. TD Cowen cut Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $250.00 to $195.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Alembic Global Advisors lowered Huntington Ingalls Industries from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, November 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from $226.00 to $194.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Huntington Ingalls Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Huntington Ingalls Industries currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $228.89.

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.