Why Huntington Ingalls Stock Popped 6% Today

Core Viewpoint - Huntington Ingalls (HII) stock has faced significant losses due to a missed earnings report, but recent analyst support suggests potential recovery [1][2][3]. Group 1: Stock Performance - HII shares experienced an 18% decline in the first week of February following a Q4 2024 earnings miss [1]. - The stock briefly rebounded but remained around the $160 level until a recent uptick of approximately 5$235 per share while maintaining a "buy" rating [3]. - The lack of detailed reasoning from Citigroup leaves investors to assess the stock's potential independently [3]. Group 3: Financial Metrics - HII's revenue grew less than 1% in 2024, totaling $11.5 billion, indicating stalled sales [3]. - The stock is valued at approximately 0.55 times trailing sales, which is historically low for a defense stock, despite having$2.6 billion in net debt [4]. - The enterprise value-to-sales ratio is less than 0.8x, and the P/E ratio stands at 11.5, with a projected long-term earnings growth rate of 11% [4]. - HII offers a dividend yield of 3.3%, although it faces challenges with weak free cash flow [4][5].