Brokerages Set Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) Target Price at $39.50

Shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the nine research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $39.50.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Citigroup raised Helmerich & Payne from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, 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.

Institutional Trading of Helmerich & Payne

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 15.7% in the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,469,609 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $125,392,000 after buying an additional 471,420 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 1,241.0% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 348,571 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $10,604,000 after purchasing an additional 322,578 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,161,286 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $35,326,000 after purchasing an additional 177,023 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 320.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 198,415 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $6,035,000 after buying an additional 151,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. increased its position in Helmerich & Payne by 18.7% during the third quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 880,781 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $26,793,000 after purchasing an additional 138,590 shares during the last quarter. 96.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Down 1.0 %

Helmerich & Payne stock traded down $0.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $35.32. 561,918 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,078,986. Helmerich & Payne has a 12-month low of $29.46 and a 12-month high of $44.11. The business has a fifty day moving average of $33.68 and a 200 day moving average of $34.21. The firm has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.27, a PEG ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 2.40 and a current ratio of 2.67.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76. The firm had revenue of $693.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $695.99 million. Helmerich & Payne had a return on equity of 12.44% and a net margin of 12.48%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Helmerich & Payne will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Helmerich & Payne's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.07%.

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.