Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Argus Analyst Says

Key Points

• Argus raised its price target on Baker Hughes to $79 from $67, implying roughly a 14.3% upside, and several other firms also lifted targets; the stock's consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $68.64.
• Baker Hughes beat Q1 EPS estimates with $0.58 versus $0.49 but recorded revenue of $6.59 billion, slightly below the $6.71 billion consensus and up 2.5% year-over-year.
• Company insiders sold a total of 590,251 shares (about $35.31 million) over the last quarter and now own 0.19% of the stock, while institutional investors hold 92.06% of shares outstanding.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at Argus from $67.00 to $79.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. Argus' target price would suggest a potential upside of 14.29% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Baker Hughes from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays upped their target price on Baker Hughes from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Baker Hughes in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.64.

Baker Hughes Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKR opened at $69.12 on Friday. Baker Hughes has a 1-year low of $35.83 and a 1-year high of $70.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $61.92 and a 200-day moving average of $54.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The company has a market capitalization of $68.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.97.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.09. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.17%.The company had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes will post 2.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Baker Hughes

In other news, Director William G. Beattie sold 18,023 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total transaction of $1,032,537.67. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Maria Georgia Magno sold 19,150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.11, for a total transaction of $1,131,956.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 14,588 shares in the company, valued at $862,296.68. This represents a 56.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 590,251 shares of company stock worth $35,311,023 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Baker Hughes

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,884 shares of the company's stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC raised its holdings in Baker Hughes by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 5,722 shares of the company's stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 42,679 shares of the company's stock worth $1,944,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Baker Hughes by 2.4% in the first quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,663 shares of the company's stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Formidable Asset Management LLC grew its position in Baker Hughes by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 7,341 shares of the company's stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.06% of the company's stock.

Baker Hughes Company Profile

Baker Hughes is an energy technology company that provides a broad portfolio of products, services and digital solutions for the oil and gas and industrial markets. Its offerings span oilfield services and equipment — including drilling, evaluation, completion and production technologies — as well as turbomachinery, compressors and related process equipment used in midstream and downstream operations. The company also supplies aftermarket services, field support and integrated solutions designed to improve asset performance and uptime across the energy value chain.

The firm's roots trace back to the merger of Baker International and Hughes Tool Company, and more recently it combined with GE's oil and gas business in 2017 to form Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE); subsequent changes in ownership restored Baker Hughes as an independent publicly traded company.

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