Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Stock Position in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP - Free Report) by 88.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,414 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 62,537 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Helmerich & Payne were worth $269,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 76.9% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,479 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 643 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 127.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,522 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the third quarter valued at $48,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne in the third quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,130 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.05% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Helmerich & Payne from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays decreased their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and set a $39.00 price target (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Helmerich & Payne presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.50.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE HP traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $34.73. 830,083 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 890,126. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.46 and a 1 year high of $44.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $33.73 and a 200 day moving average of $34.20. The stock has a market cap of $3.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

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

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Helmerich & Payne's dividend payout ratio 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.