Westpac Banking Corp Raises Position in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM)

Westpac Banking Corp increased its stake in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM) by 458.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,767 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 36,755 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Howmet Aerospace were worth $4,896,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 12.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 263,830 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,450,000 after purchasing an additional 28,568 shares during the period. Vista Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Howmet Aerospace during the 4th quarter worth $531,000. Genesis Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Howmet Aerospace in the 4th quarter worth $249,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Howmet Aerospace in the 4th quarter valued at about $289,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 303.1% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 10,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 8,241 shares in the last quarter. 90.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Howmet Aerospace Stock Performance

HWM stock opened at $133.89 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $129.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.48, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 2.17. Howmet Aerospace Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.80 and a 1 year high of $140.55.

Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.03. Howmet Aerospace had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 25.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Howmet Aerospace Inc. will post 3.27 EPS for the current year.

Howmet Aerospace Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This is an increase from Howmet Aerospace’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.30%. Howmet Aerospace’s payout ratio is currently 14.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on HWM. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Howmet Aerospace from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upped their target price on Howmet Aerospace from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $140.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Howmet Aerospace in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.28.

About Howmet Aerospace

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.