Virtu Financial LLC Increases Stock Position in HEICO Co. (NYSE:HEI)

Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of HEICO Co. (NYSE:HEI) by 54.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,411 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,962 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in HEICO were worth $1,881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HEI. AGF Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of HEICO by 61.7% during the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 949,945 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $212,417,000 after buying an additional 362,625 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of HEICO by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,276,326 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $586,036,000 after acquiring an additional 311,304 shares during the period. Vantage Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of HEICO in the second quarter worth approximately $26,993,000. EULAV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of HEICO by 23.4% during the first quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 352,093 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $67,250,000 after purchasing an additional 66,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zeno Equity Partners LLP bought a new position in HEICO during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,365,000. Institutional investors own 27.12% of the company’s stock.

HEICO Price Performance

NYSE HEI opened at $261.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $36.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.33, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.22. HEICO Co. has a 12 month low of $155.42 and a 12 month high of $264.22. The company’s 50 day moving average is $239.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $218.78. The company has a current ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

HEICO (NYSE:HEI) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 26th. The aerospace company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.05. HEICO had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 14.51%. The company had revenue of $992.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $995.34 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. HEICO’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that HEICO Co. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

HEICO Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 1st were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 1st. This represents a dividend yield of 0.1%. This is a boost from HEICO’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.07. HEICO’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HEI. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of HEICO from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on HEICO from $235.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley upgraded HEICO from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $178.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of HEICO in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of HEICO from $248.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, HEICO currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $259.67.

Insider Activity at HEICO

In other HEICO news, insider Eric A. Mendelson sold 2,832 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.06, for a total transaction of $509,929.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,305,563.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other HEICO news, insider Eric A. Mendelson sold 2,832 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.06, for a total transaction of $509,929.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 246,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,305,563.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric A. Mendelson sold 8,864 shares of HEICO stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.54, for a total value of $1,600,306.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 222,401 shares in the company, valued at $40,152,276.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 85,206 shares of company stock valued at $15,571,927. 8.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About HEICO

HEICO Corporation, through its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells aerospace, defense, and electronic related products and services in the United States and internationally. Its Flight Support Group segment provides jet engine and aircraft component replacement parts; thermal insulation blankets and parts; renewable/reusable insulation systems; and specialty components.