Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Hits New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $26.32 and last traded at $25.74, with a volume of 1895995 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.29.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HP has been the subject of several research reports. Argus upgraded Helmerich & Payne to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 price objective (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays dropped their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.75.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Down 1.0 %

The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 8.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $32.05 and a 200 day moving average of $33.07. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last posted its 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 return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 11.02%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 3.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

Insider Activity at Helmerich & Payne

In other news, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 54,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay acquired 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.55 per share, for a total transaction of $551,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 691,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,042,945.70. The trade was a 2.98 % 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

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HP. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 643 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 127.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,522 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 854 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the third quarter valued at about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.05% of the company’s stock.

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.