Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Plans Dividend Increase – $0.23 Per Share

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 30th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be paid a dividend of 0.23 per share on Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. This is an increase from Baker Hughes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21.

Baker Hughes has increased its dividend by an average of 5.3% annually over the last three years. Baker Hughes has a payout ratio of 28.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Baker Hughes to earn $2.55 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.84 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 32.9%.

Baker Hughes Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BKR opened at $44.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $43.00 and its 200-day moving average is $38.96. Baker Hughes has a 52-week low of $28.32 and a 52-week high of $47.47. The company has a market cap of $44.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.39.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 13.77% and a net margin of 8.20%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes will post 2.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Baker Hughes in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $48.06.

Insider Activity at Baker Hughes

In other Baker Hughes news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 8,000 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total value of $358,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 173,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,758,730.54. This trade represents a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes Company provides a portfolio of technologies and services to energy and industrial value chain worldwide. The company operates through Oilfield Services & Equipment (OFSE) and Industrial & Energy Technology (IET) segments. The OFSE segment designs and manufactures products and provides related services, including exploration, appraisal, development, production, rejuvenation, and decommissioning for onshore and offshore oilfield operations.