Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Trading Up 5.5% – Should You Buy?

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)’s share price shot up 5.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $35.83 and last traded at $35.7040. 915,941 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 48% from the average session volume of 1,749,473 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on HP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Evercore set a $37.00 price target on Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.20.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of -11.19 and a beta of 0.54. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $990.16 million. Helmerich & Payne had a positive return on equity of 0.28% and a negative net margin of 7.71%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 50.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -31.35%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Hans Helmerich sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.12, for a total transaction of $2,109,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 496,735 shares in the company, valued at $13,968,188.20. This represents a 13.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Helmerich & Payne

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 99,710 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,203,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 22,761 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $653,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 29,418 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 21.3% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,487 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.05% of the company’s stock.

About Helmerich & Payne

Helmerich & Payne, Inc is a leading provider of contract drilling services to the oil and gas industry, specializing primarily in onshore drilling operations. The company designs, engineers and operates a fleet of advanced drilling rigs, including its proprietary FlexRigs, which are engineered for high efficiency, safety and rapid mobilization. Alongside core drilling services, Helmerich & Payne offers well intervention, workover and coiled tubing services, positioning itself as a comprehensive drilling solutions partner for exploration and production companies worldwide.

Founded in 1920 and headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Helmerich & Payne has grown through innovation and strategic expansion to serve diverse hydrocarbon basins.