MQS Management LLC Purchases New Position in Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,874 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $250,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Herc by 32.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 22,755 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,388,000 after acquiring an additional 5,544 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Herc by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 3,371 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Herc during the fourth quarter worth about $43,505,000. UBS Group AG grew its position in Herc by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 43,605 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,492,000 after purchasing an additional 22,895 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in Herc by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 84,185 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $12,534,000 after purchasing an additional 14,069 shares in the last quarter. 93.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Herc Price Performance

Herc stock opened at $155.37 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.36. Herc Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.17 and a 12 month high of $171.00. The company has a market cap of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 2.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by ($0.34). Herc had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 26.99%. The firm had revenue of $848.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $813.05 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Herc Holdings Inc. will post 13.68 EPS for the current year.

Herc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. Herc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.97%.

Insider Activity at Herc

In related news, COO Aaron Birnbaum sold 10,000 shares of Herc stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.71, for a total value of $1,467,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 38,232 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,609,016.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, COO Aaron Birnbaum sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.71, for a total transaction of $1,467,100.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 38,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,609,016.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tamir Peres sold 5,821 shares of Herc stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.03, for a total value of $925,713.63. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 35,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,632,047.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HRI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Herc in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut Herc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Herc in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $159.50.

About Herc

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.