Optimist Retirement Group LLC Takes Position in HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ)

Optimist Retirement Group LLC acquired a new stake in HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 61,659 shares of the computer maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,855,000. HP comprises about 1.2% of Optimist Retirement Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in shares of HP by 84.6% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 866 shares of the computer maker's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in HP during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of HP by 116.7% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,051 shares of the computer maker's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA bought a new stake in shares of HP during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its stake in shares of HP by 47.9% during the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the computer maker's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. 77.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on HPQ. StockNews.com downgraded shares of HP from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Citigroup upped their target price on HP from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. UBS Group lifted their price target on HP from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on HP from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on HP from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, HP presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $34.64.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert R. Bennett sold 67,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.01, for a total transaction of $2,010,670.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,216 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,807,082.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

HP Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HPQ traded down $0.93 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $35.52. The company had a trading volume of 8,581,985 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,218,200. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.13. The firm has a market cap of $34.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.12. HP Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.22 and a 1-year high of $39.52.

HP (NYSE:HPQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The computer maker reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.01. HP had a net margin of 5.60% and a negative return on equity of 230.39%. The company had revenue of $12.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.61 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that HP Inc. will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

HP Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2756 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 11th. HP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.16%.

HP Profile

HP Inc provides products, technologies, software, solutions, and services to individual consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses, and large enterprises, including customers in the government, health, and education sectors worldwide. It operates through Personal Systems and Printing segments. The Personal Systems segment offers commercial personal computers (PCs), consumer PCs, workstations, thin clients, commercial tablets and mobility devices, retail point-of-sale systems, displays and other related accessories, software, support, and services for the commercial and consumer markets.