Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) Short Interest Up 23.6% in January

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 32,525,256 shares, an increase of 23.6% from the December 31st total of 26,321,090 shares. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 18,015,354 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 18,015,354 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Halliburton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HAL opened at $32.77 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $29.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.77. Halliburton has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $35.55.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 19.77%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Halliburton will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Halliburton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio is 45.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HAL. Redburn Partners set a $35.00 price target on Halliburton in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Halliburton from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Halliburton from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Halliburton from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Halliburton in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Margaret Katherine Banks sold 2,600 shares of Halliburton stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.17, for a total value of $88,842.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $479,849.31. The trade was a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller sold 171,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total value of $5,985,152.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,101,243 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,499,455.28. The trade was a 13.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 497,002 shares of company stock worth $15,889,138 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Halliburton

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clearstead Trust LLC raised its stake in shares of Halliburton by 7.4% during the third quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 5,370 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Halliburton by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,320 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust raised its position in Halliburton by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 16,789 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Halliburton by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 2,434 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in Halliburton by 22.2% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,369 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 431 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.23% of the company’s stock.

About Halliburton

Halliburton is one of the world’s largest providers of products and services to the energy industry, offering a broad portfolio that supports the lifecycle of oil and gas reservoirs from exploration and drilling through production and abandonment. Founded in 1919 by Erle P. Halliburton as an oil-well cementing company, the firm is headquartered in Houston, Texas and has developed into an integrated oilfield services company serving upstream operators globally.

The company’s activities encompass drilling and evaluation, well construction and completion, production enhancement and well intervention.