Herc (NYSE:HRI) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.40 EPS

Herc (NYSE:HRI) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The transportation company reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.98 by ($0.40), Zacks reports. Herc had a return on equity of 26.35% and a net margin of 10.09%.

Herc Stock Down 5.5 %

NYSE:HRI traded down $11.36 on Thursday, hitting $196.50. The stock had a trading volume of 232,058 shares, compared to its average volume of 285,348. Herc has a 52 week low of $124.70 and a 52 week high of $246.88. The company has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 2.04. The business’s fifty day moving average is $199.51 and its 200 day moving average is $182.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89.

Herc Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Herc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Herc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HRI. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Herc from $204.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Herc from $175.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Herc from $200.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Herc presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $219.75.

About Herc

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.