Hilton Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

Hilton Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,554 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,501 shares during the period. Hilton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Helmerich & Payne were worth $1,106,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 18.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 9,004 shares during the period. Private Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,095,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,413,749 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $45,268,000 after buying an additional 62,377 shares during the last quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 93.9% during the 4th quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 76,064 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,436,000 after buying an additional 36,828 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hara Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 519.3% during the 4th quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 61,114 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after buying an additional 51,245 shares during the last quarter. 96.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 4.4 %

Helmerich & Payne stock opened at $25.92 on Friday. 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 quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 2.81. The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.53, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.06.

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

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

Insider Activity at Helmerich & Payne

In other Helmerich & Payne news, CEO John W. Lindsay bought 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,042,945.70. This trade represents a 2.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Belgacem Chariag bought 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,011,600.48. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 54,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 4.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HP. Argus raised Helmerich & Payne to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup raised Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 price target (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Helmerich & Payne presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

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.