Recent performance snapshot for Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE)

Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE) has drawn fresh investor attention after recent price moves, with the stock up 1.7% over the past day but down about 13% over the past month.

At a share price of $13.75, Hawaiian Electric Industries sits between an 8.9% year to date share price gain and a 29.8% total shareholder return over one year, but longer term total shareholder returns over three and five years are significantly weaker. This suggests recent momentum follows a period of substantial value erosion for long term holders.

If you are reassessing your utilities exposure after HE's recent moves, it can be useful to see how other grid focused companies are trading by scanning 34 power grid technology and infrastructure stocks

With HE trading at $13.75, right in line with the current analyst price target and showing mixed long term returns, you need to ask whether this is a reset level worth considering or whether the market already reflects its future growth.

Most Popular Narrative: Fairly Valued

With Hawaiian Electric Industries closing at $13.75 and the most followed narrative also landing on a fair value of $13.75, the market and that narrative are currently aligned on price while disagreeing on how comfortable that valuation is.

Recent Hawaii legislation enabling wildfire liability caps, state funding for settlements, and securitization of wildfire safety investments significantly reduces legal and financial risk exposure while supporting large-scale infrastructure upgrades, which is likely to stabilize earnings and improve net margins. Streamlined focus on the core utility business, after divesting non-core assets such as American Savings Bank and Pacific Current's energy facilities, positions Hawaiian Electric to deploy capital more efficiently towards grid modernization and renewable integration, driving long-term asset growth and revenue generation.

Curious what sits behind that fair value label when the company has only recently returned to profit, carries wildfire related costs, and faces a low single digit revenue growth outlook. The key is how earnings, margins, and the future profit multiple are threaded together in this narrative and how they are discounted at just under 8%.

The narrative uses a discount rate of 7.55%, ties fair value directly to expected earnings and margins rather than current headlines, and anchors on a specific price target of $13.75 that matches the present share price. Result: Fair Value of $13.75 (ABOUT RIGHT)

However, you still need to factor in wildfire related litigation costs, as well as higher mitigation and insurance expenses, which could pressure margins and strain future cash generation.

Another View on HE's Valuation

While the fair value narrative lands exactly on the current $13.75 share price, the P/E story points in a different direction. HE trades on 18.7x earnings versus 21.6x for the US Electric Utilities sector and 25.5x for peers, while the fair ratio sits higher again at 22.4x.

That discount suggests the market is pricing in extra execution or balance sheet risk, even as earnings forecasts improve. The question for you is whether that gap is sufficient compensation for wildfire and funding uncertainties, or if it signals more potential downside than upside.

Next Steps

Given the mixed signals around HE, it makes sense to look past headlines and decide for yourself using the full breakdown of 4 key rewards and 1 important warning sign

Looking for more investment ideas?

If HE has sharpened your focus, do not stop here. The next move might come from a stock you have not even considered yet.

• Target potential mispricings by scanning a curated set of 51 high quality undervalued stocks that combine quality fundamentals with discounted prices.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.