Helios Technologies (NASDAQ:HLIO) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Helios Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIO - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $27.13, but opened at $28.99. Helios Technologies shares last traded at $28.89, with a volume of 87,002 shares changing hands.

The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.08. Helios Technologies had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 8.22%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share.

Helios Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. Helios Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.43%.

Helios Technologies declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on HLIO shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Helios Technologies from $65.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Helios Technologies from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday.

Institutional Trading of Helios Technologies

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HLIO. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Helios Technologies by 71.8% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 687 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Helios Technologies by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 70,733 shares of the company's stock worth $3,158,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Helios Technologies by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 8,955 shares of the company's stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Helios Technologies by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 61,895 shares of the company's stock worth $2,763,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Helios Technologies by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,765 shares of the company's stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the period. 94.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Helios Technologies Trading Up 4.2%

The company has a current ratio of 3.03, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company's fifty day moving average is $30.55 and its 200-day moving average is $40.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.04 and a beta of 1.22.

Helios Technologies Company Profile

Helios Technologies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides engineered motion control and electronic control technology solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Hydraulics and Electronics. The Hydraulics segment offers cartridge valve technology products to control rates and direction of fluid flow, and to regulate and control pressures for industrial and mobile applications; hydraulic quick release coupling solutions for the agriculture, construction equipment, and industrial markets; motion control technology and fluid conveyance technology; cartridge valve technology; engineered solutions for machine users, manufacturers, or designers.