Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Stock Moved Down to "Sell" by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Helmerich & Payne from “hold” to “sell.” Despite the move, analysts overall maintain a “hold” consensus, with seven Buy, five Hold and one Sell rating and an average price target of $44.36.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.11 per share, missing estimates of $0.09 earnings per share, although revenue of $1.03 billion exceeded expectations. Revenue declined 0.6% year over year.
• Company insiders sold a combined 110,673 shares worth about $4.86 million over the past three months.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

HP has been the topic of several other research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Helmerich & Payne from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.36.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 1.6%

HP stock opened at $35.23 on Friday. Helmerich & Payne has a twelve month low of $24.45 and a twelve month high of $48.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.63. The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.25 and a 200 day moving average of $37.35.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.20). Helmerich & Payne had a negative return on equity of 2.35% and a negative net margin of 3.43%. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $987.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Helmerich & Payne will post -0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Helmerich & Payne

In other news, SVP Cara Hair sold 11,149 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total value of $493,566.23. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,024,925.65. This trade represents a 7.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sara Momper sold 5,054 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.28, for a total value of $223,791.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 16,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,900.24. This represents a 22.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 110,673 shares of company stock valued at $4,864,590 in the last three months. 4.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Helmerich & Payne

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Helmerich & Payne by 1.7% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 104,269 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,873,000 after buying an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its position in Helmerich & Payne by 52.5% in the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 22,211 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $825,000 after buying an additional 7,648 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 24,505 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. lifted its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 11.0% in the third quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 10,263 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 1,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 1.0% during the third quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 326,527 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $12,127,000 after purchasing an additional 3,230 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.05% of the company's stock.

Helmerich & Payne Company Profile

Helmerich & Payne, Inc is a contract drilling company that provides land-based and offshore drilling services to oil and gas exploration and production companies. The company operates drilling rigs and provides related equipment, technology and field services used to drill and develop hydrocarbon wells.

H&P is known for its FlexRig fleet, including AC-powered rigs designed for horizontal and unconventional drilling. Its services may include rig operations, drilling support, automation and other technologies intended to improve operational efficiency, well placement and safety.

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