Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Stock Sees Unusually High Call Option Buying

Key Points

• Call-option activity surged: Investors bought 6,843 Baker Hughes call options, 142% above the average volume of 2,822; shares rose 4.4% to $49.87 during Wednesday trading.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: Baker Hughes reported EPS of $0.70 versus analysts’ $0.61 estimate and revenue of $8.03 billion, up 14.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $70.27. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share.

Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 6,843 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 142% compared to the average volume of 2,822 call options.

Baker Hughes Stock Up 4.4%

Shares of NASDAQ BKR traded up $2.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $49.87. 3,607,816 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,780,605. The company's fifty day moving average is $56.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.24. Baker Hughes has a fifty-two week low of $44.26 and a fifty-two week high of $70.41. The stock has a market cap of $49.53 billion, a PE ratio of 17.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.07.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.09. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 13.55% and a net margin of 10.08%. The firm had revenue of $8.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Baker Hughes will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Baker Hughes Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Baker Hughes's payout ratio is currently 31.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John Rice purchased 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $53.10 per share, with a total value of $531,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 77,315 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,105,426.50. This trade represents a 14.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Baker Hughes

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 25,485 shares of the company's stock worth $1,556,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Resolute Wealth Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Baker Hughes by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Resolute Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 6,597 shares of the company's stock valued at $403,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Paladin Wealth LLC increased its position in Baker Hughes by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Paladin Wealth LLC now owns 9,162 shares of the company's stock worth $503,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Baker Hughes by 36.3% in the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 954 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BKR shares. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Baker Hughes from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Baker Hughes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Freedom Broker upgraded shares of Baker Hughes from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $51.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $73.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $70.27.

About Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes NASDAQ: BKR is an energy technology company that provides products and services to the oil and gas industry and other industrial markets. Its offerings include equipment and services used across the energy value chain, from exploration and production to transportation and processing. The company also develops turbomachinery, industrial equipment, digital technologies and solutions for energy and industrial applications. Its portfolio includes technologies designed to support more efficient operations and lower-emissions energy systems.

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