H&E Equipment Services (NASDAQ:HEES) Sets New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:HEES - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $99.28 and last traded at $97.80, with a volume of 468359 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $87.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HEES. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $92.00 price objective (up previously from $60.00) on shares of H&E Equipment Services in a research report on Friday, January 17th. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target (down from $62.00) on shares of H&E Equipment Services in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on H&E Equipment Services in a research note on Monday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, H&E Equipment Services presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $69.25.

H&E Equipment Services Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock's fifty day moving average is $71.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.39.

H&E Equipment Services (NASDAQ:HEES - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.18. H&E Equipment Services had a return on equity of 25.46% and a net margin of 9.47%. Analysts forecast that H&E Equipment Services, Inc. will post 3.25 earnings per share for the current year.

H&E Equipment Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. H&E Equipment Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On H&E Equipment Services

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HEES. Access Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of H&E Equipment Services by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 20,976 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,027,000 after buying an additional 3,555 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in H&E Equipment Services by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 755,017 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,762,000 after acquiring an additional 4,226 shares in the last quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of H&E Equipment Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $542,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of H&E Equipment Services by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 779,075 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $37,925,000 after purchasing an additional 21,805 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of H&E Equipment Services during the third quarter worth about $524,000. 84.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

H&E Equipment Services Company Profile

H&E Equipment Services, Inc engages in the provision of equipment services, which focus on heavy construction and industrial equipment. It operates through the following segments: Equipment Rentals, New Equipment Sales, Used Equipment Sales, Parts Sales, and Services. The Equipment Rentals segment focuses on renting construction and industrial equipment.