Natixis Buys New Stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

Natixis purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 57,600 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,844,000. Natixis owned approximately 0.06% of Helmerich & Payne at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Helmerich & Payne by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 2,686,215 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $86,013,000 after purchasing an additional 801,000 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Helmerich & Payne in the 4th quarter valued at about $21,572,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the fourth quarter valued at about $10,931,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,522,144 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $48,739,000 after acquiring an additional 329,734 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,658,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $85,121,000 after acquiring an additional 327,374 shares in the last quarter. 96.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Performance

NYSE:HP opened at $19.81 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $23.98 and a 200-day moving average of $30.23. The firm has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.82 and a twelve month high of $42.68.

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

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Helmerich & Payne’s payout ratio is 32.89%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Belgacem Chariag purchased 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the purchase, the director now owns 54,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay bought 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $551,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 4.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Helmerich & Payne from $32.00 to $25.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup dropped their price target 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. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and issued a $39.00 target price (down previously from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Argus upgraded Helmerich & Payne to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Helmerich & Payne has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.78.

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.