Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Receives “Hold” Rating from Benchmark

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Benchmark in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports.

HP has been the subject of several other reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Helmerich & Payne to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays reduced their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Helmerich & Payne presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.57.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Performance

NYSE HP traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $34.66. The stock had a trading volume of 152,684 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,377,606. Helmerich & Payne has a 52-week low of $29.46 and a 52-week high of $44.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 2.40 and a current ratio of 2.67. The stock has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $33.65 and a 200 day moving average of $35.04.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.76. Helmerich & Payne had a return on equity of 12.44% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $693.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $695.99 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Helmerich & Payne will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helmerich & Payne

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 16.3% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 33,184 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,396,000 after purchasing an additional 4,650 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the 1st quarter valued at $208,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 253.4% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 940 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 112.9% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 20,386 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $857,000 after acquiring an additional 10,810 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 17.5% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 132,972 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,589,000 after purchasing an additional 19,831 shares during the period. 96.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.