Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

by · The Cerbat Gem

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE – Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 15,490,000 shares, an increase of 19.2% from the February 13th total of 12,990,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.7 days. Currently, 9.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Stock Down 1.4 %

HE stock traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $11.00. 1,734,048 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,460,918. The stock has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.93 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a fifty-two week low of $7.61 and a fifty-two week high of $18.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $9.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.17.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The utilities provider reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.19). Hawaiian Electric Industries had a positive return on equity of 11.12% and a negative net margin of 35.38%. The business had revenue of $799.18 million during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hawaiian Electric Industries will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 203.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 2,062 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 34.8% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 69.3% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 4,189 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.50 to $10.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com downgraded Hawaiian Electric Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.00 to $12.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Hawaiian Electric Industries from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $12.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hawaiian Electric Industries currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.00.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Hawaiian Electric Industries

Hawaiian Electric Industries Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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