Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $23.50 and last traded at $23.75, with a volume of 496894 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.78.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Argus raised shares of Helmerich & Payne to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup upgraded Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays cut their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.11.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Down 12.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 2.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $26.89 and a 200 day moving average of $31.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.50, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.43.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.06%. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.89%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John W. Lindsay acquired 20,000 shares of Helmerich & Payne stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $551,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,011,600.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 54,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 4.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 413,542 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $13,242,000 after purchasing an additional 64,971 shares during the last quarter. Private Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Helmerich & Payne in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,095,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Helmerich & Payne by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,413,749 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $45,268,000 after buying an additional 62,377 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 93.9% during the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 76,064 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,436,000 after buying an additional 36,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 389.3% in the fourth quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 38,754 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after acquiring an additional 30,833 shares during the period. 96.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Helmerich & Payne Company Profile

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.