Citigroup Lowers Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Price Target to $32.00

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Citigroup from $33.00 to $32.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the oil and gas company's stock.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on HP. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and issued a $39.00 price target (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded Helmerich & Payne to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.22.

Helmerich & Payne Trading Up 4.1 %

Shares of Helmerich & Payne stock traded up $0.76 on Tuesday, hitting $19.18. 2,071,002 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,506,438. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $25.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.80. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of 6.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. Helmerich & Payne has a one year low of $17.82 and a one year high of $42.68.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts expect that Helmerich & Payne will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Helmerich & Payne news, CEO John W. Lindsay purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $551,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 691,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,042,945.70. This represents a 2.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 54,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,730.48. This represents a 216.56 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 4.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HP. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 510.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 140,655 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,279,000 after buying an additional 117,624 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 22,341 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 11,719 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 74,590 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,269,000 after purchasing an additional 6,508 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne in the 3rd quarter valued at about $441,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.05% of the company's stock.

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.