Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. (NYSE:HLX) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. (NYSE:HLX - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,610,000 shares, a growth of 16.4% from the October 15th total of 5,680,000 shares. Currently, 4.6% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,910,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

Insider Activity at Helix Energy Solutions Group

In other Helix Energy Solutions Group news, CEO Owen E. Kratz sold 298,419 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.92, for a total transaction of $3,557,154.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 7,171,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $85,488,571.20. The trade was a 3.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Helix Energy Solutions Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HLX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Helix Energy Solutions Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,366,874 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $144,897,000 after acquiring an additional 152,413 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Helix Energy Solutions Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,018,797 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $131,559,000 after purchasing an additional 254,880 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group in the second quarter valued at about $81,862,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group by 3.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,664,257 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $73,973,000 after purchasing an additional 246,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,413,435 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $40,756,000 after purchasing an additional 680,635 shares during the last quarter. 91.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HLX has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised Helix Energy Solutions Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, November 2nd. BTIG Research downgraded shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Helix Energy Solutions Group from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Helix Energy Solutions Group Stock Performance

HLX stock traded down $0.36 during trading on Friday, hitting $9.95. 1,137,718 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,824,366. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 2.29. Helix Energy Solutions Group has a 1 year low of $8.82 and a 1 year high of $13.05. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $10.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.83. The company has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 248.75 and a beta of 2.43.

Helix Energy Solutions Group (NYSE:HLX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $342.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $354.74 million. Helix Energy Solutions Group had a net margin of 0.54% and a return on equity of 4.39%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Helix Energy Solutions Group will post 0.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helix Energy Solutions Group Company Profile

Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, an offshore energy services company, provides specialty services to the offshore energy industry in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, the East Coast of the United States, North Sea, the Asia Pacific, and West Africa regions. The company operates through four segments: Well Intervention, Robotics, Production Facilities, and Shallow Water Abandonment segments.