Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $37.25.

Several analysts recently commented on HP shares. Argus raised Helmerich & Payne to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 price objective (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th.

Insider Activity at Helmerich & Payne

In other Helmerich & Payne news, CEO John W. Lindsay bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $551,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 691,214 shares in the company, valued at $19,042,945.70. This trade represents a 2.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the purchase, the director now owns 54,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,730.48. This represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 4.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helmerich & Payne

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HP. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Helmerich & Payne by 76.9% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,479 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Helmerich & Payne during the third quarter worth about $48,000. Steph & Co. acquired a new position in Helmerich & Payne in the 4th quarter valued at about $87,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 82.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.05% of the company’s stock.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HP opened at $24.78 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.17. The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.15, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Helmerich & Payne has a 12 month low of $23.80 and a 12 month high of $44.11.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 11.31%. As a group, analysts predict that Helmerich & Payne will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

About Helmerich & Payne

Founded in 1920, Helmerich & Payne, Inc (H&P) (NYSE: HP) is committed to delivering industry leading levels of drilling productivity and reliability. H&P operates with the highest level of integrity, safety and innovation to deliver superior results for its customers and returns for shareholders.