Bridgewater Associates LP Lowers Stake in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR)

Bridgewater Associates LP reduced its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Free Report) by 71.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 350,421 shares of the company's stock after selling 884,209 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Baker Hughes were worth $14,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Baker Hughes by 135.9% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 670 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 41.2% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 740 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Baker Hughes during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter worth $47,000. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Baker Hughes Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of BKR stock traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $38.06. 917,839 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,854,974. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.08. Baker Hughes has a 12-month low of $30.93 and a 12-month high of $49.40. The company's 50-day moving average price is $42.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 10.70%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Baker Hughes Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is a positive change from Baker Hughes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Baker Hughes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BKR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Baker Hughes from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Baker Hughes from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Baker Hughes from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total transaction of $358,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 173,302 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,758,730.54. This represents a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Baker Hughes Company Profile

Baker Hughes Company provides a portfolio of technologies and services to energy and industrial value chain worldwide. The company operates through Oilfield Services & Equipment (OFSE) and Industrial & Energy Technology (IET) segments. The OFSE segment designs and manufactures products and provides related services, including exploration, appraisal, development, production, rejuvenation, and decommissioning for onshore and offshore oilfield operations.