First Trust Advisors LP Grows Stock Position in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP - Free Report) by 43.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 264,688 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 80,041 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.27% of Helmerich & Payne worth $8,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 2,686,215 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $86,013,000 after purchasing an additional 801,000 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,658,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $85,121,000 after purchasing an additional 327,374 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,557,931 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $49,885,000 after purchasing an additional 53,277 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 27.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,522,144 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $48,739,000 after purchasing an additional 329,734 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,413,749 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $45,268,000 after purchasing an additional 62,377 shares during the period. 96.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:HP opened at $19.82 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $23.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.77. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.82 and a fifty-two week high of $42.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.52, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 11.31%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.05%. Helmerich & Payne's payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $43.00 to $28.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $32.00 to $25.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Helmerich & Payne to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $31.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $27.08 per share, with a total value of $1,011,600.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 54,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,730.48. This trade represents a 216.56 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John W. Lindsay bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.55 per share, for a total transaction of $551,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 691,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,042,945.70. The trade was a 2.98 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 4.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Helmerich & Payne Company Profile

Founded in 1920, Helmerich & Payne, Inc (H&P) NYSE: HP is committed to delivering industry leading levels of drilling productivity and reliability. H&P operates with the highest level of integrity, safety and innovation to deliver superior results for its customers and returns for shareholders.

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