American Century Companies Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP - Free Report) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,658,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 327,374 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 2.67% of Helmerich & Payne worth $85,121,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HP. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Helmerich & Payne during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Steph & Co. bought a new position in Helmerich & Payne in the 4th quarter worth approximately $87,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 143.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,703 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $113,000 after buying an additional 2,181 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.05% of the company's stock.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

HP traded down $0.47 on Friday, reaching $25.27. The company had a trading volume of 871,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,452,392. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.80 and a 52-week high of $44.11. The company has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 2.81. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.65.

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Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current 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 issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne's payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

Insider Activity

In other Helmerich & Payne news, Director Belgacem Chariag purchased 37,356 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,478,730.48. This represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay acquired 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price 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. This trade represents a 2.98 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Argus upgraded Helmerich & Payne to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price 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. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and issued a $39.00 price target (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Helmerich & Payne from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $36.11.

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.