Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) CEO Purchases $551,000.00 in Stock

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) CEO John W. Lindsay bought 20,000 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 691,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,042,945.70. This represents a 2.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

NYSE:HP traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $27.30. The stock had a trading volume of 1,774,588 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,639,904. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 2.40. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a one year low of $26.61 and a one year high of $44.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.37.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 11.31%. Research analysts forecast that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Helmerich & Payne’s payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 price target (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Citigroup upgraded shares of Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helmerich & Payne

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HP. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its position in Helmerich & Payne by 18.1% during the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 58,634 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,784,000 after acquiring an additional 9,004 shares during the last quarter. Petrus Trust Company LTA bought a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 3rd quarter valued at $619,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 510.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 140,655 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,279,000 after purchasing an additional 117,624 shares during the last quarter. Tandem Financial LLC bought a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the fourth quarter worth $413,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in Helmerich & Payne by 320.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 198,415 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,035,000 after buying an additional 151,196 shares during the period. 96.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.