Eric D. Chewning
HUNTINGTON INGALLS INDUSTRIESAbout Eric D. Chewning
Eric D. Chewning is Executive Vice President, Maritime Systems & Corporate Strategy at HII. He joined HII in January 2023 as EVP, Strategy & Development after serving as Chief of Staff to the U.S. Secretary of Defense and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy; earlier he co-led McKinsey’s Americas Aerospace & Defense practice, served as a U.S. Army military intelligence officer, and began his career in investment banking at Morgan Stanley. He holds an MBA from UVA Darden and BA/MA in international relations from the University of Chicago; he is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the H&B Defence JV board in Australia . HII’s recent performance context: FY24 revenues $11.535B, net earnings $550M, EPS $13.96, free cash flow $40M, and 2024 TSR of -25.7% .
HII multi-year performance metrics:
| Metric (USD Millions unless noted) | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Income | 696 | 544 | 579 | 681 | 550 |
| EBITDAP | 796 | 972 | 1,060 | 1,211 | 941 |
| Revenues | — | — | — | — | 11,535 |
| Diluted EPS ($) | — | — | — | — | 13.96 |
| Free Cash Flow | — | — | — | — | 40 |
| 1-Year TSR (%) | — | — | — | — | -25.7 |
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Department of Defense | Chief of Staff to the Secretary of Defense | 2019–2020 | Led secretary’s executive team; cross-service coordination at the highest levels . |
| U.S. Department of Defense | Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy | 2017–2019 | Principal advisor on defense industrial base health and policy . |
| McKinsey & Company | Co-lead, Americas A&D practice | 2020–2023 | Guided growth strategy and operational performance across A&D clients . |
| U.S. Army | Military Intelligence Officer | ~6 years | Operational experience; veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom . |
| Morgan Stanley & Co. | Investment Banking Analyst (Industrials) | Early career | Corporate finance and M&A foundation . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| H&B Defence (HII–Babcock JV, Australia) | Director | 2025– | JV advancing sovereign capability for conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines . |
| Council on Foreign Relations | Life Member | — | National security policy network . |
| State Council of Higher Education for Virginia | Member (appointed) | — | Appointed by Governor Glenn Youngkin . |
Fixed Compensation
- HII discloses NEO base salaries and incentive targets; EVP-specific base salary for Eric D. Chewning is not itemized in the proxy. The program for executives features base salary plus annual incentive targets benchmarked to peers; corporate NEO base salaries in 2024 ranged from $565k to $1.3M, with CEO target bonus at 145% and other NEOs at 80% of base salary .
- HII’s pay practices: no employment agreements for executives; severance provided only under a plan in limited termination circumstances; no change-in-control agreements or tax gross-ups; robust clawback; independent compensation consultant; stock ownership guidelines .
Performance Compensation
2024 Annual Incentive Plan structure (corporate-level framework applicable to corporate executives):
- Corporate performance factor (CPF): 90% financial (Operating Margin and Operating Cash Flow) + 10% strategic leadership (leadership, ESG, cybersecurity, compliance); capped at 200% .
- Division frameworks include operational metrics (safety, quality, cost, schedule), financial metrics (revenue/EBITDA/OCF), and strategic leadership; caps at 200% .
Illustrative corporate AIP metrics/results for 2024:
| Metric | Weight | 0% Target | 100% Target | 200% Target | Actual | Points Earned | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating Margin (%) | 45% | 5.60 | 6.61 | 7.03 | 6.62 | 102 | Adjusted for older contracts effects . |
| Operating Cash Flow ($M) | 45% | 1,233 | 1,527 | 1,620 | — | 0 | OCF goal unmet; CPF impact . |
| Strategic Leadership | 10% | 0 | 100 | 200 | 186 | 19 | Governance/cyber/compliance focus |
Long-term incentives:
- 2024 LTI awards under HII’s 2022 Plan: 70% Restricted Performance Stock Rights (RPSRs) with a Jan 1, 2024–Dec 31, 2026 performance period; metrics are ROIC (40%), EBITDAP (40%), and relative EBITDAP growth vs SPSIAD (20%), payout 0–200% of granted shares; 30% Restricted Stock Rights (RSRs) vest ratably over 3 years; dividend equivalents accrue and pay only upon vesting .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
Ownership, vesting, pledging/hedging:
- Initial beneficial ownership (Form 3) on joining HII (event 01/30/2023): 0 shares of common stock directly owned .
- Reported Form 4 activity indicates routine equity vesting and tax withholding transactions in 2025:
- 02/26/2025: Acquisition via option/RSU conversion (Code M) of 299 shares and a tax withholding disposition (Code F) of 106 shares at $173.19; net direct shares disclosed post-transaction (Form 4 filed 02/27/2025) .
- 03/17/2025: Additional Form 4 filed reflecting equity-related changes (details per filing) .
- 09/15/2025: Form 4 filed (details per filing) .
- Stock ownership guidelines: executives reporting to the CEO must hold HII stock equal to 3x base salary; holding requirements applied to awards granted prior to Jan 1, 2024 (retain ≥50% of shares received until 3rd anniversary or death/disability); awards after Jan 1, 2024 no holding requirement; individual compliance percentages disclosed only for NEOs, not for Chewning .
- Pledging/hedging: Company prohibits pledging, margin, short sales, derivatives, and hedging transactions in HII securities for officers and directors .
Employment Terms
- Severance Plan (for elected/appointed officers): 1.5x base salary plus target bonus (lump sum), 18 months medical/dental premiums, financial planning reimbursements (up to $30k CEO; $15k others per year for two years), executive physical (up to $4k through year of termination), and outplacement (up to 15% of base salary) upon qualifying termination (involuntary without cause or downgrade) with release .
- Equity on termination: RPSRs prorated/accelerated upon retirement/death/disability; RSRs accelerate on death/disability; under change-in-control with qualifying termination, RSRs accelerate fully and unvested RPSR cycles accelerate at target; payouts typically in Q1 following the performance period end .
- Change-in-control: no individual CIC agreements or tax gross-ups; only plan-defined equity acceleration on double trigger .
- Clawback: Dodd-Frank-aligned compensation recovery policy covering erroneously awarded incentive compensation for executive officers/vice presidents .
- Deferred compensation: Savings Excess Plan permits deferrals of salary/bonus above IRS limits with matching; ORAC provides 4% company contribution for eligible officers; Section 409A governs form/timing of distributions .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Strong governance (no employment/CIC agreements, anti-hedging/pledging, clawback) plus stock ownership guidelines indicate high-quality compensation risk controls and incentive alignment with OM, OCF, ROIC, and EBITDAP—metrics tied to cash conversion, margins, and returns .
- Insider pressure: Chewning’s reported insider transactions in 2025 are small and consistent with equity vesting and tax withholding mechanics; limited direct selling pressure indicated by modest share counts disclosed in Form 4s .
- Retention & execution risk: Severance (1.5x salary+bonus) and equity acceleration only on double trigger provide retention incentives without entrenchment; performance plan metrics (ROIC, EBITDAP, relative growth) encourage multi-year value creation. HII’s 2024 TSR (-25.7%) juxtaposed with record revenues underscores sensitivity of incentives to cash/returns over headline sales and the importance of Chewning’s remit expanding maritime systems throughput via outsourcing and industrial base partnerships .
Notes and References
- Executive biography and appointment: .
- 2024 performance and pay program context: .
- Ownership guidelines and prohibitions: .
- Severance and CIC terms: .
- Deferred compensation programs: .
- Insider filings: Form 3 (initial ownership) ; Form 4s (2025 events) ; summary roster/metrics .
If you want further detail (e.g., exact share counts from each 2025 Form 4 or grant-by-grant vesting dates), I can extract each filing line item for a transaction-by-transaction table.