Hills Bank & Trust Co Increases Stock Holdings in Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON)

Hills Bank & Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 10,587 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Honeywell International were worth $2,391,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Honeywell International during the fourth quarter worth $435,786,000. ING Groep NV lifted its stake in Honeywell International by 884.0% in the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,752,472 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $395,866,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574,376 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Honeywell International by 8.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,826,700 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,684,957,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376,479 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in Honeywell International by 320.5% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 858,336 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $193,890,000 after buying an additional 654,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Honeywell International by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,763,764 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,527,867,000 after acquiring an additional 631,761 shares during the last quarter. 75.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Honeywell International news, VP Anne T. Madden sold 28,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.89, for a total transaction of $6,004,902.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 41,580 shares in the company, valued at $8,644,066.20. The trade was a 40.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on HON. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Honeywell International from $210.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Honeywell International from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Honeywell International from $268.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Honeywell International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $236.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Honeywell International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $249.38.

Honeywell International Stock Performance

Shares of HON stock opened at $209.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a market cap of $136.14 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $215.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.43. Honeywell International Inc. has a 52 week low of $189.75 and a 52 week high of $242.77.

Honeywell International (NASDAQ:HON) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The conglomerate reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.10. Honeywell International had a return on equity of 35.78% and a net margin of 14.82%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Honeywell International Inc. will post 10.34 EPS for the current year.

Honeywell International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Honeywell International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.89%.

About Honeywell International

Honeywell International Inc engages in the aerospace technologies, building automation, energy and sustainable solutions, and industrial automation businesses in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company’s Aerospace segment offers auxiliary power units, propulsion engines, integrated avionics, environmental control and electric power systems, engine controls, flight safety, communications, navigation hardware, data and software applications, radar and surveillance systems, aircraft lighting, advanced systems and instruments, satellite and space components, and aircraft wheels and brakes; spare parts; repair, overhaul, and maintenance services; and thermal systems, as well as wireless connectivity services.