Natixis Makes New $1.84 Million Investment in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

Natixis acquired a new stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 57,600 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,844,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Helmerich & Payne by 43.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 264,688 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,475,000 after acquiring an additional 80,041 shares in the last quarter. Adams Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Adams Wealth Management now owns 23,640 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 3,978 shares during the last quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC increased its position in Helmerich & Payne by 79.2% during the fourth quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC now owns 179,483 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,747,000 after buying an additional 79,313 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 170,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,443,000 after buying an additional 25,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NFJ Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC now owns 157,868 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,055,000 after buying an additional 6,848 shares in the last quarter. 96.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HP. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $43.00 to $28.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 target price (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.78.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of HP opened at $19.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 2.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.23. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.82 and a 52 week high of $42.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00.

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

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

Insider Activity

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

Helmerich & Payne Company Profile

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.