Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 76,865 Shares of Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. sold 76,865 shares of Baker Hughes Company, reducing its holdings by 60.3% in the first quarter, now owning 50,693 shares worth approximately $2.23 million.
• Equity analysts show a bullish stance on Baker Hughes with 18 buy ratings and a consensus price target of $51.47, while recent quarterly earnings exceeded estimates.
• CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold over 526,000 shares at an average price of $44.42, marking a significant decrease of 44.10% in his ownership stake.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR - Free Report) by 60.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,693 shares of the company's stock after selling 76,865 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Baker Hughes were worth $2,228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes during the first quarter worth $28,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 678.7% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 693 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes during the first quarter worth $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 76.2% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 740 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 132.9% during the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 815 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on BKR. TD Cowen raised their price target on Baker Hughes from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Baker Hughes from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Securities cut their target price on Baker Hughes from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $46.00 target price (up previously from $43.00) on shares of Baker Hughes in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $51.47.

Insider Activity at Baker Hughes

In other news, CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold 526,568 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total transaction of $23,390,150.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 667,593 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,654,481.06. The trade was a 44.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Baker Hughes Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKR traded up $0.07 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $43.82. 4,937,116 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,063,769. The stock has a market cap of $43.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.32, a P/E/G ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 0.94. Baker Hughes Company has a fifty-two week low of $32.25 and a fifty-two week high of $49.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.08. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.56% and a net margin of 11.04%. The company had revenue of $6.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes Company will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. Baker Hughes's payout ratio is currently 30.07%.

Baker Hughes Profile

Baker Hughes Company provides a portfolio of technologies and services to energy and industrial value chain worldwide. The company operates through Oilfield Services & Equipment (OFSE) and Industrial & Energy Technology (IET) segments. The OFSE segment designs and manufactures products and provides related services, including exploration, appraisal, development, production, rejuvenation, and decommissioning for onshore and offshore oilfield operations.