Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ: HON) finished Thursday, December 18, 2025, in the red even as the broader market posted solid gains. The stock closed at $198.08 (-0.91%), and in after-hours trading it was essentially flat-to-lower, last quoted around $197.96 (-0.06%) as of 7:53 p.m. ET, with about 1.1 million shares trading after the close—noticeable activity for extended hours, but not the kind of move that typically signals a major breaking headline. [1]
Below is what mattered after the bell on Dec. 18 and what investors will likely be watching before Friday’s open (Dec. 19, 2025).
HON stock recap: the key numbers from Thursday’s session
Honeywell traded through a wide range Thursday and ended lower:
- Close: $198.08 (-0.91%)
- After-hours (latest): $197.96 (-0.06%)
- Day’s range: roughly $196.66 to $201.33 (depending on data source)
- Volume: roughly 3.3M shares (regular session)
The day’s price action matters because $200 is a widely watched psychological level; Honeywell opened above it and slipped below by the close, suggesting sellers were active into the afternoon. [2]
For broader context: Thursday was a generally positive U.S. session, with the S&P 500 up about 0.79% and the Dow up about 0.14%—a “risk-on” backdrop that Honeywell did not fully participate in. [3]
Why Honeywell lagged even as the market rallied
Thursday’s market tone was heavily influenced by fresh inflation data and shifting rate expectations.
Reuters reported that U.S. CPI inflation for November came in cooler than expected, and that helped lift equities while pushing Treasury yields down and weakening the dollar—dynamics that often support large industrials over time by improving the discount-rate backdrop and implying easier financial conditions. [4]
So why did HON still close lower?
There wasn’t one obvious single-company catalyst on Dec. 18 that explains the drop. Instead, the session looked more like a case of stock-specific positioning and rotation inside industrials and aerospace-adjacent names (some of which outperformed notably). One MarketWatch peer-performance wrap noted that GE Aerospace rose sharply while Honeywell fell, highlighting the mixed tape within the same broad industrial/aerospace ecosystem. [5]
The key takeaway for Friday: Honeywell didn’t signal “headline risk” after hours—the stock was nearly unchanged late in extended trading—so the next move may hinge more on macro data and rates than on a new company announcement. [6]
After the bell: an SEC Form 4 filing (equity award, not an open-market trade)
One concrete, time-stamped item that did hit the tape after the close was an SEC Form 4 filing tied to Honeywell’s leadership.
The filing shows Billal Hammoud (listed as President & CEO, BA) received 4,993 restricted stock units (RSUs) granted on December 17, 2025, with the filing dated December 18, 2025. Importantly for traders: this is an equity award/grant, not an open-market buy or a discretionary sale, and the RSUs are described as vesting in December 2028. [7]
In practical terms, these filings can still matter for sentiment—because they remind investors about compensation structure and leadership roles—but they usually do not move the stock by themselves unless paired with other major news.
“Today’s” investor sentiment checks: short interest and positioning
Two investor-facing data points circulated Thursday that speak to positioning rather than fundamentals:
Short interest ticked higher (still low overall)
Benzinga flagged that Honeywell’s short interest rose versus the prior report and cited about 9.58 million shares sold short (around 1.51% of float), with an estimated ~2.53 days to cover based on recent volume. Even with the increase, that level is still relatively low in “high short interest” terms—but it can matter at the margin when the stock sits near round-number levels like $200. [8]
Institutional rebalancing headlines (often “noise,” but worth noting)
Some finance outlets also pushed 13F-style ownership/positioning stories on Dec. 18. These items can influence retail sentiment, but they tend to be backward-looking (reflecting prior quarter positioning) rather than a real-time read on what’s happening this week.
Wall Street forecasts: where analysts see HON headed from here
Even though Honeywell is trading below $200 tonight, sell-side forecasts (as aggregated by market-data providers) are generally higher:
- Average target price: about $235.95
- Consensus stance: around Overweight
- Ratings count: about 28 analysts in the aggregation
That implies meaningful upside on a 12‑month view—but targets are not timing tools, and near-term price action can still be dominated by macro data, flows, and risk appetite. [9]
Recent analyst actions in mid-December also kept Honeywell in focus, including:
- Evercore ISI initiating coverage with an Outperform rating and a $255 price target (dated Dec. 15 on one aggregation), and
- Goldman Sachs adjusting its price target to $236 from $245, while maintaining a Buy rating (dated Dec. 16). [10]
What to watch into Friday: If HON is weak again while macro tailwinds are supportive, investors may start focusing more on company-specific execution risks (particularly tied to restructuring/separation complexity) rather than the interest-rate backdrop.
The strategic overhang (and potential catalyst): Honeywell’s ongoing transformation
To understand why the stock can trade “heavy” on otherwise good market days, it helps to remember that Honeywell is still digesting a major multi-step transformation.
In Honeywell’s Q3 update (released Oct. 23, 2025), the company reiterated that the planned separations are intended to create three publicly listed industry leaders, and stated that the overall process was on track to be fully completed in the second half of 2026. [11]
That same release also provided updated 2025 guidance (inclusive of the advanced materials spin impacts), including:
- Adjusted EPS guidance:$10.60 to $10.70
- Full-year sales guidance:$40.7B to $40.9B
- A segmentation shift expected beginning Q1 2026 for its automation businesses. [12]
And for investors focused specifically on the separation mechanics: Honeywell’s SEC materials around the Solstice distribution described the spin-off’s distribution timing (effective early Oct. 30, 2025). [13]
Why it matters tomorrow morning: Transformations like this can increase the stock’s sensitivity to (1) analyst narrative shifts and (2) macro volatility—because investors often debate what the “right” valuation should be before the post-separation fundamentals are fully visible.
What to know before the market opens Friday, Dec. 19, 2025
Here’s the practical, pre-open checklist for Honeywell watchers.
1) Friday’s economic data: PCE is the headline for rate expectations
Investing.com’s calendar preview points to a busy Friday morning, including:
- 8:30 a.m. ET:Core PCE Price Index (m/m) (Fed’s preferred inflation gauge)
- 8:30 a.m. ET: Additional PCE-related releases (y/y measures), plus personal income/spending items
- 10:00 a.m. ET:Existing Home Sales (forecast ~4.15M vs. prior 4.10M in that preview)
- 10:00 a.m. ET:Michigan Consumer Sentiment (final)
- Additional items later in the day (rig counts, positioning reports, etc.)
For Honeywell, the key linkage is simple: PCE can move yields, and yields can move equity multiples—especially for mega-cap industrials trading at market-like valuations. [14]
2) It’s a major options expiration day (potential volatility)
Friday, Dec. 19, 2025 is the third Friday of December, which is widely associated with major derivatives expirations (“quadruple witching” / similar expiration dynamics depending on product set). These sessions can bring higher volume and short-term volatility, especially into the close—sometimes creating moves that look “fundamental” but are more flow-driven. [15]
3) Holiday calendar headlines are affecting trading assumptions into year-end
A Reuters report Thursday said U.S. exchanges intend to remain open on Dec. 24 and Dec. 26 (with the usual early close on Dec. 24 still expected), despite a federal-government office closure directive. This matters because trading conditions and liquidity can shift quickly heading into the holiday week, which can amplify intraday moves in large-cap names like HON. [16]
4) Watch HON pre-market behavior vs. $200
With HON sitting just under $200 in late trading, Friday’s pre-market is likely to center on two questions:
- Does HON reclaim $200 quickly if PCE is benign?
- Or does it stay pinned below $200, suggesting sellers (or hedging flows) remain active?
Since after-hours trading can be thinner and more headline-sensitive than the regular session, it’s also worth remembering that extended-hours quotes can move on relatively modest volume compared with the day session. [17]
Bottom line for Friday’s open
Honeywell enters Friday with muted after-hours action and no obvious “shock” catalyst, but the setup is still eventful:
- Macro inflation data (Core PCE) has the potential to move rates and the whole tape. [18]
- Options-expiration dynamics can amplify moves that might not reflect a true change in Honeywell’s fundamentals. [19]
- A fresh Form 4 after the bell underscores routine equity-comp practices but doesn’t read as a discretionary insider trade. [20]
- On the Street, price targets remain well above the current quote, but near-term direction may still be dictated by rates and flows more than by target-price math. [21]
References
1. www.marketwatch.com, 2. www.marketwatch.com, 3. www.marketwatch.com, 4. www.reuters.com, 5. www.marketwatch.com, 6. www.marketwatch.com, 7. www.sec.gov, 8. www.benzinga.com, 9. www.marketwatch.com, 10. www.marketscreener.com, 11. www.honeywell.com, 12. www.honeywell.com, 13. www.sec.gov, 14. ng.investing.com, 15. www.investopedia.com, 16. www.reuters.com, 17. www.marketwatch.com, 18. ng.investing.com, 19. www.investopedia.com, 20. www.sec.gov, 21. www.marketwatch.com
