Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Nine firms rate Herc Holdings “Moderate Buy,” including six buys and one strong buy, with an average 12-month price target of $184.43 versus a recent price of $124.75.
• Institutional ownership is high: Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.11% of HRI, with several major firms recently increasing their positions or initiating stakes.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Herc reported adjusted earnings of $1.43 per share and $1.20 billion in revenue, beating estimates and delivering 20.2% year-over-year revenue growth; it also pays a $0.70 quarterly dividend.

Shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the nine research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $184.43.

HRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Herc from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research upgraded Herc from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Herc from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Herc from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Herc from $176.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herc

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRI. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Herc by 17.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,164,022 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $115,872,000 after buying an additional 170,189 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Herc by 13.4% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 873,338 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $86,941,000 after acquiring an additional 103,047 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Herc in the second quarter valued at about $86,054,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Herc by 147.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 235,320 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $23,426,000 after acquiring an additional 140,355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC bought a new stake in Herc during the first quarter worth about $21,866,000. 93.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Herc Stock Performance

Shares of HRI stock opened at $124.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. Herc has a 52 week low of $88.45 and a 52 week high of $188.35. The company's 50 day moving average price is $149.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.14. The company has a market capitalization of $4.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.86 and a beta of 2.04.

Herc (NYSE:HRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.67. Herc had a net margin of 1.01% and a return on equity of 10.33%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.87 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Herc will post 6.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Herc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Herc's dividend payout ratio is presently 190.48%.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc is an equipment rental supplier operating under the Herc Rentals brand. The company provides construction, industrial, commercial and government customers with access to equipment and related services without requiring them to purchase and maintain their own fleets.

Its rental fleet includes aerial work platforms, earthmoving equipment, material-handling equipment, trucks and trailers, and general construction tools. Herc Rentals also offers specialty equipment and services for power generation, climate control, pumps, remediation, trench safety, and other specialized project requirements.

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