Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Trims Holdings in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its stake in Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM) by 22.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,072 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,954 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Howmet Aerospace were worth $2,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Howmet Aerospace by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 263,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,450,000 after acquiring an additional 28,568 shares during the period. Vista Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace during the 4th quarter worth $531,000. Genesis Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Howmet Aerospace in the 4th quarter worth about $249,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Howmet Aerospace by 135.9% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 26,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,622,000 after buying an additional 15,070 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Howmet Aerospace in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $289,000. Institutional investors own 90.46% of the company’s stock.

Howmet Aerospace Stock Up 1.2 %

HWM stock opened at $133.62 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $122.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Howmet Aerospace Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.80 and a 12 month high of $140.55.

Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. Howmet Aerospace had a return on equity of 25.74% and a net margin of 15.55%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Howmet Aerospace Inc. will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Howmet Aerospace Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This is a boost from Howmet Aerospace’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Howmet Aerospace’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on HWM. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Howmet Aerospace from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $103.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Howmet Aerospace in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Howmet Aerospace from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Howmet Aerospace currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.28.

Howmet Aerospace 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.