Helios Technologies (NASDAQ:HLIO) Stock Price Up 8.4% - What's Next?

Helios Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIO - Get Free Report) shares rose 8.4% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $31.35 and last traded at $31.27. Approximately 201,253 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 10% from the average daily volume of 223,663 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HLIO. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Helios Technologies from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird cut 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, May 8th.

Helios Technologies Trading Up 1.2%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $29.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.53. The company has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.61 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 3.03, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Helios Technologies (NASDAQ:HLIO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.08. Helios Technologies had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 8.22%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. Helios Technologies's quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Helios Technologies, Inc. will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Helios Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 7th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. Helios Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.43%.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HLIO. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Helios Technologies by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,328,127 shares of the company's stock worth $148,568,000 after acquiring an additional 13,059 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Helios Technologies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,841,823 shares of the company's stock worth $82,219,000 after purchasing an additional 21,683 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Helios Technologies by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,438,786 shares of the company's stock worth $64,227,000 after purchasing an additional 79,178 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Helios Technologies by 9.6% in the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 789,915 shares of the company's stock worth $25,349,000 after purchasing an additional 68,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Helios Technologies by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 637,703 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,467,000 after purchasing an additional 5,684 shares in the last quarter. 94.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.