Swiss National Bank Sells 15,500 Shares of Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR)

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in Baker Hughes Company by 0.6%, owning approximately 2.79 million shares valued at $122.7 million as of the most recent SEC filing.
• CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold over 526,000 shares of Baker Hughes, resulting in a 44.1% decrease in his ownership of the stock.
• Despite a slight revenue decline, Baker Hughes reported $0.63 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations and maintaining a dividend yield of 2.1%.

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR - Free Report) by 0.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,790,920 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,500 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.28% of Baker Hughes worth $122,661,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Baker Hughes by 2,585.6% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,856,915 shares of the company's stock worth $169,511,000 after acquiring an additional 3,713,301 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at about $128,542,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Baker Hughes by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,000,756 shares of the company's stock worth $410,231,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553,536 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its holdings in Baker Hughes by 1,170.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 1,290,044 shares of the company's stock worth $52,918,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188,529 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Baker Hughes by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 122,118,216 shares of the company's stock worth $5,367,096,000 after acquiring an additional 924,501 shares during the period. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baker Hughes Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKR traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $42.48. The company had a trading volume of 2,459,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,948,759. The firm has a market cap of $41.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.87, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.94. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $40.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.83. Baker Hughes Company has a one year low of $32.25 and a one year high of $49.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.41.

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

Baker Hughes Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. Baker Hughes's payout ratio is currently 30.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Seaport Res Ptn cut Baker Hughes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $51.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Baker Hughes news, CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold 526,568 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total value of $23,390,150.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 667,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,654,481.06. This trade represents a 44.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Baker Hughes Company 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.