Hunting (LON:HTG) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Hunting's stock climbed above its 200‑day moving average, trading as high as GBX 511 and last at GBX 507 versus the 200‑day MA of GBX 427.36 on volume of 7,722,488 shares.
• The board authorized a $40 million stock repurchase (up to 5.3% of shares), while analysts remain mostly bullish with a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average target of GBX 536 after several target increases.
• Insider Bruce Ferguson sold 66,154 shares at an average of GBX 507 (about £335,400), and corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company.

Hunting PLC (LON:HTG - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 427.36 and traded as high as GBX 511. Hunting shares last traded at GBX 507, with a volume of 7,722,488 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HTG. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Hunting from GBX 440 to GBX 500 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 600 price target on shares of Hunting in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a GBX 400 price target on shares of Hunting in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Hunting from GBX 450 to GBX 580 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hunting has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of GBX 536.

Hunting Stock Down 0.2%

The company has a current ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.38. The firm has a market cap of £743.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a 50-day moving average of GBX 497.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 427.36.

Hunting declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 5th that allows the company to buyback $40.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 5.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hunting

In related news, insider Bruce Ferguson sold 66,154 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 507, for a total transaction of £335,400.78. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company's stock.

About Hunting

Hunting is a global precision engineering group, which provides quality-assured products and services for the energy, aviation, commercial space, defence, medical, and power generation sectors. Our strong focus on quality assured products, supported by rigorous health and safety procedures, ensures we assist in the delivery of energy safely and it is also the basis of our standing in this critical, global industry. Our intellectual property portfolio enables the Hunting Group to maintain a leading technology edge, so that energy projects are delivered quicker and at lower cost with minimal impact on the environment. Our people are our most important asset.

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