Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Earns "Underweight" Rating from Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley reaffirmed their underweight rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Free Report) in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. Morgan Stanley currently has a $27.00 price target on the oil and gas company's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price 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. Citigroup raised shares of Helmerich & Payne from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Argus raised Helmerich & Payne to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an "in-line" rating and set a $39.00 target price (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $36.11.

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Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 2.4 %

HP traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $25.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 348,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,448,276. Helmerich & Payne has a 1 year low of $23.80 and a 1 year high of $44.11. The stock's 50-day moving average is $28.02 and its 200-day moving average is $31.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.50, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 11.02%. As a group, research analysts expect that Helmerich & Payne will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.87%. Helmerich & Payne's payout ratio is 32.89%.

Insider Transactions at Helmerich & Payne

In related news, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of Helmerich & Payne stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,011,600.48. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 54,606 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $551,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 691,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,042,945.70. This trade represents a 2.98 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company 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. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne in the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 61.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,386 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 907 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 4th quarter valued at $87,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 82.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.05% of the company's stock.

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.