Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Stock Rating Upgraded by Citigroup

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Citigroup from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $40.00 price target on the oil and gas company's stock, up from their prior price target of $33.00. Citigroup's price objective points to a potential upside of 16.65% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on HP. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Benchmark restated a "hold" rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.57.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 4.6 %

NYSE:HP traded up $1.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $34.29. The stock had a trading volume of 1,602,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,000,848. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 2.40. The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.97, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.39. The business's 50 day moving average is $33.61 and its 200 day moving average is $34.20. Helmerich & Payne has a fifty-two week low of $29.46 and a fifty-two week high of $44.11.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.76. The firm had revenue of $693.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $695.99 million. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 12.44%. The business'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 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Helmerich & Payne will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helmerich & Payne

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HP. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 76.9% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,479 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 127.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,522 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 854 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in Helmerich & Payne during the third quarter worth about $48,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 96.9% in the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,538 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne in the third quarter worth about $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.