Investors Buy Large Volume of Baker Hughes Put Options (NASDAQ:BKR)

Key Points

• Put-option activity surged: Investors bought 8,920 Baker Hughes put options, about 172% above the average volume, signaling increased hedging or concern about potential volatility.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Baker Hughes reported adjusted EPS of $0.64 versus the $0.49 consensus, while revenue reached $6.74 billion, up 2.4% year over year and above estimates.
• Analysts remain broadly positive: Eighteen analysts rate the stock Buy and four rate it Hold, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $70 average price target versus the recent $60.59 share price. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share.

Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 8,920 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 172% compared to the average volume of 3,279 put options.

Insider Activity at Baker Hughes

In other Baker Hughes news, CAO Rebecca L. Charlton sold 5,088 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.22, for a total transaction of $326,751.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 15,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,027,327.34. The trade was a 24.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold 181,411 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.43, for a total transaction of $10,599,844.73. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 703,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,102,232.92. The trade was a 20.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 367,910 shares of company stock worth $22,420,797 over the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Baker Hughes

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EFG International AG bought a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 344.1% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 604 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 468 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Baker Hughes by 49.0% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 651 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baker Hughes Trading Up 5.8%

Shares of BKR traded up $3.34 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $60.59. The stock had a trading volume of 15,184,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,249,100. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Baker Hughes has a 52 week low of $41.96 and a 52 week high of $70.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.00 and a 200 day moving average of $59.97. The company has a market cap of $60.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.96.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.15. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 11.17%.The business had revenue of $6.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Baker Hughes will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Baker Hughes's payout ratio is currently 29.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on Baker Hughes in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Baker Hughes in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Baker Hughes in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Baker Hughes from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Baker Hughes from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

More Baker Hughes News

Here are the key news stories impacting Baker Hughes this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Baker Hughes reported second-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.64, exceeding the $0.49 analyst consensus, while revenue of $6.74 billion topped expectations by $230 million and rose 2.4% year over year. Baker Hughes Q2 earnings results
• Positive Sentiment: The Industrial & Energy Technology segment was the key growth driver, with expanding margins, orders up 49% and record remaining performance obligations. Total orders reached $10.5 billion, including $7.1 billion from IET, while total backlog rose to $40.1 billion. Baker Hughes Q2 earnings beat
• Positive Sentiment: A major LNG technology order from Venture Global for the CP2 expansion in Louisiana reinforces Baker Hughes’ exposure to LNG infrastructure and long-term energy demand. Baker Hughes Venture Global LNG order
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cash flow, energy infrastructure demand tied to LNG and data-center power needs, and the company’s ability to navigate Middle East disruptions improved investor confidence. The board also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, payable August 17 to shareholders of record August 7. Baker Hughes dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Baker Hughes expects global oil and gas producer spending to decline modestly in 2026, with growth in Latin America, offshore Africa and North American land offset by weaker spending in Europe and the Middle East. This creates a softer backdrop for traditional drilling services. Baker Hughes producer spending outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Unusually heavy put-option activity, with put volume roughly 172% above average, suggests some traders are hedging against volatility. Separately, analysts have cautioned that BKR’s valuation may already reflect much of its operational improvement, while Middle East-related demand and geopolitical benefits could reverse.

About Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes is an energy technology company that provides a broad portfolio of products, services and digital solutions for the oil and gas and industrial markets. Its offerings span oilfield services and equipment — including drilling, evaluation, completion and production technologies — as well as turbomachinery, compressors and related process equipment used in midstream and downstream operations. The company also supplies aftermarket services, field support and integrated solutions designed to improve asset performance and uptime across the energy value chain.

The firm's roots trace back to the merger of Baker International and Hughes Tool Company, and more recently it combined with GE's oil and gas business in 2017 to form Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE); subsequent changes in ownership restored Baker Hughes as an independent publicly traded company.

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