HEICO (NYSE:HEI) Receives “Buy” Rating from Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of HEICO (NYSE:HEI) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $170.00 target price on the aerospace company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on HEI. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of HEICO in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a hold rating on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on HEICO from $190.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on HEICO from $204.00 to $206.00 in a report on Friday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of HEICO in a report on Friday, August 18th. They set an equal weight rating and a $184.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Vertical Research upgraded shares of HEICO from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $191.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, HEICO has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $193.44.

HEICO Stock Performance

HEICO stock opened at $165.57 on Tuesday. HEICO has a fifty-two week low of $138.82 and a fifty-two week high of $182.18. The company has a market capitalization of $22.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.65, a PEG ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $172.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $170.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.93.

HEICO (NYSE:HEI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 28th. The aerospace company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $722.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $701.55 million. HEICO had a return on equity of 14.07% and a net margin of 15.19%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 26.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that HEICO will post 2.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HEICO Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 3rd were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 30th. HEICO’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.33%.

Insider Activity at HEICO

In related news, Director Mark H. Hildebrandt acquired 781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $127.98 per share, with a total value of $99,952.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $99,952.38. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Laurans A. Mendelson bought 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $125.83 per share, for a total transaction of $39,007.30. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 16,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,087,142.21. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark H. Hildebrandt purchased 781 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $127.98 per share, for a total transaction of $99,952.38. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 781 shares in the company, valued at $99,952.38. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 1,211 shares of company stock worth $157,944. 8.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of HEICO

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HEI. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of HEICO by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,363,157 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $209,434,000 after buying an additional 40,452 shares during the last quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC increased its position in shares of HEICO by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,198,169 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $212,004,000 after purchasing an additional 44,873 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of HEICO in the 1st quarter worth about $85,710,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in shares of HEICO by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 362,502 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $62,002,000 after purchasing an additional 14,997 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of HEICO by 336.7% during the first quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 348,363 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $59,584,000 after purchasing an additional 268,584 shares during the last quarter. 27.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About HEICO

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.