Herc Holdings Inc. $HRI Shares Bought by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Ameriprise Financial Inc. significantly increased its stake in Herc Holdings Inc. by 200.5%, owning 274,915 shares valued at approximately $36.9 million as of the last quarter.
• Other large investors, including Invesco and Jennison Associates, also raised their positions in Herc Holdings, indicating strong institutional interest as 93.11% of the company's stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Herc Holdings reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.87 EPS, surpassing analysts' estimates, and has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, reflecting a yield of 2.1%.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI - Free Report) by 200.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 274,915 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 183,433 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 0.96% of Herc worth $36,913,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Xponance Inc. grew its stake in Herc by 5.1% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 2,223 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Vista Finance LLC grew its stake in Herc by 8.0% in the first quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in Herc by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,331 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in Herc by 646.7% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 224 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bailard Inc. grew its stake in Herc by 7.0% in the first quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 3,947 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.11% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup dropped their price target on Herc from $170.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Herc from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Herc from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Herc currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.60.

Herc Stock Performance

NYSE HRI traded down $6.46 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $125.15. The stock had a trading volume of 175,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 514,507. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $130.51 and a 200 day moving average of $128.93. The stock has a market cap of $4.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 145.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.83. Herc Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.18 and a 52-week high of $246.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.37, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Herc (NYSE:HRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.58. The firm had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $868.23 million. Herc had a return on equity of 20.77% and a net margin of 0.61%. Sell-side analysts predict that Herc Holdings Inc. will post 12.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Herc Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Herc's payout ratio is presently 325.58%.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.