Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,980,000 shares, an increase of 15.0% from the July 31st total of 6,940,000 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,850,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HWM has been the topic of several research reports. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $53.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $83.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Argus upped their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $84.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Howmet Aerospace presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.67.

Insider Transactions at Howmet Aerospace

In other news, EVP Neil Edward Marchuk sold 70,637 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.94, for a total value of $6,847,550.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 92,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,985,077.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Neil Edward Marchuk sold 70,637 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.94, for a total value of $6,847,550.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 92,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,985,077.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ken Giacobbe sold 154,909 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total transaction of $14,961,111.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 155,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,982,938.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 258,160 shares of company stock valued at $24,556,718. 1.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Howmet Aerospace

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Howmet Aerospace during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Howmet Aerospace by 278.7% during the 2nd quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Howmet Aerospace during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Howmet Aerospace by 1,209.1% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Howmet Aerospace by 81.4% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. 90.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Howmet Aerospace Price Performance

NYSE:HWM opened at $96.66 on Friday. Howmet Aerospace has a 1-year low of $42.94 and a 1-year high of $98.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $77.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.45 billion, a PE ratio of 46.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.45.

Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. Howmet Aerospace had a net margin of 13.15% and a return on equity of 23.02%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Howmet Aerospace will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Howmet Aerospace Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 26th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is a boost from Howmet Aerospace’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. Howmet Aerospace’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.46%.

Howmet Aerospace Company Profile

Howmet Aerospace Inc provides advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries in the United States, Japan, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Italy, Canada, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Engine Products, Fastening Systems, Engineered Structures, and Forged Wheels.