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

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HE) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,800,000 shares, a growth of 16.1% from the October 31st total of 8,440,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,010,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $14.00 to $11.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Hawaiian Electric Industries from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in a report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating and a $11.50 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Trading Down 1.6 %

Hawaiian Electric Industries stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $10.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,005,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,364,817. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $10.11 and its 200 day moving average is $11.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.18. Hawaiian Electric Industries has a 1-year low of $7.61 and a 1-year high of $18.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.86 and a beta of 0.53.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE:HE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.07). Hawaiian Electric Industries had a negative net margin of 35.38% and a positive return on equity of 11.12%. The company had revenue of $983.38 million for the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Hawaiian Electric Industries’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hawaiian Electric Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Zimmer Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $145,200,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 7,986.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,340,679 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $51,698,000 after buying an additional 5,274,633 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Hawaiian Electric Industries by 656.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,722,668 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,499,000 after buying an additional 2,362,863 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 52.8% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,693,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,308,000 after acquiring an additional 2,312,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hawaiian Electric Industries by 49.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,793,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,725,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253,143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.91% of the company’s stock.

About Hawaiian Electric Industries

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.