Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) Shares Sold by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lowered its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) by 61.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,362 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 16,389 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Helmerich & Payne were worth $332,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Helmerich & Payne during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the third quarter worth $48,000. Steph & Co. purchased a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne in the fourth quarter valued at $87,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 143.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,703 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 2,181 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $39.00 price target (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.11.

Insider Activity at Helmerich & Payne

In other news, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 54,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,478,730.48. This represents a 216.56 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay purchased 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.55 per share, for a total transaction of $551,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 691,214 shares in the company, valued at $19,042,945.70. The trade was a 2.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.51% of the company’s stock.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

NYSE HP opened at $26.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $27.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.57. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.80 and a fifty-two week high of $44.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 2.52.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 11.31%. On average, analysts anticipate that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

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.