HEICO Co. (NYSE:HEI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

HEICO Co. (NYSE:HEI) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,640,000 shares, an increase of 5.1% from the October 15th total of 1,560,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 334,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.9 days. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other HEICO news, Director Alan Schriesheim sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.23, for a total value of $328,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 105,111 shares in the company, valued at $17,262,379.53. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other HEICO news, Director Alan Schriesheim sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.23, for a total transaction of $328,460.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 105,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,262,379.53. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laurans A. Mendelson sold 23,477 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.20, for a total value of $3,901,877.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,694,451 shares in the company, valued at $281,617,756.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 8.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HEICO

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HEI. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in HEICO in the third quarter worth $42,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in HEICO in the 1st quarter worth about $43,000. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in HEICO by 41.5% during the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 341 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new stake in HEICO in the 2nd quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in HEICO by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 447 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 27.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of HEICO in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on HEICO from $204.00 to $206.00 in a report on Friday, August 11th. Benchmark increased their price target on HEICO from $170.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 30th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on HEICO in a research note on Friday, August 18th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $184.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on HEICO from $186.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $198.10.

HEICO Stock Performance

NYSE HEI remained flat at $169.97 on Friday. 197,771 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 335,430. The company has a quick ratio of 2.50, a current ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. HEICO has a 52 week low of $147.69 and a 52 week high of $182.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $162.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.55.

HEICO (NYSE:HEI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 29th. The aerospace company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $722.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $701.55 million. HEICO had a net margin of 15.05% and a return on equity of 14.30%. The firm’s revenue was up 26.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that HEICO will post 2.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HEICO Company Profile

HEICO Corporation, through its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells aerospace, defense, and electronic related products and services. The company's Flight Support Group segment provides jet engine and aircraft component replacement parts; thermal insulation blankets and parts; renewable/reusable insulation systems; and specialty components.