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

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 19,482,450 shares, a growth of 38.6% from the December 15th total of 14,054,762 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 6,675,042 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days. Currently, 11.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Currently, 11.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 6,675,042 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 28.6% in the 2nd quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 16,281,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $173,075,000 after purchasing an additional 3,624,709 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 119.2% in the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 225,662 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,399,000 after buying an additional 122,737 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 180.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 878,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,696,000 after acquiring an additional 565,218 shares during the last quarter. CSM Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hawaiian Electric Industries in the second quarter valued at about $5,440,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 1.3% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,744,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,178,000 after acquiring an additional 34,535 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 59.91% of the company’s stock.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Stock Performance

HE stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $14.44. 3,228,308 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,072,243. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a one year low of $8.75 and a one year high of $15.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 180.50 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $12.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.20) by $0.39. The company had revenue of $790.61 million for the quarter. Hawaiian Electric Industries had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 9.51%. Equities research analysts forecast that Hawaiian Electric Industries will post 1.71 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in a research report on Friday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.38.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Company Profile

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc is a diversified holding company operating in the energy and financial services sectors in the state of Hawaii. Its principal subsidiary, Hawaiian Electric Company, provides generation, transmission, distribution and customer service to the island of Oahu, while its Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light Company subsidiaries serve Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii Island. The roots of the electric utility business trace back to 1891 when service first commenced in Honolulu.

Through its subsidiary Hawaii Gas, HEI extends its energy portfolio to include the distribution of natural gas and propane, supporting residential, commercial and industrial customers across the islands.