Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) Share Price Breaks Above 50-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Halliburton shares moved above their 50-day moving average, trading around $33.72 versus the average of $33.67.
• The company beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $0.60 versus $0.58 expected and revenue of $5.70 billion; revenue grew 1.8% year over year.
• Analysts rate the stock a “Moderate Buy,” with a consensus price target of $43.86. Halliburton also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, equivalent to a 2.0% yield.

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL - Get Free Report) passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $33.67 and traded as high as $33.79. Halliburton shares last traded at $33.7190, with a volume of 8,857,015 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Halliburton in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Halliburton from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Halliburton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $43.00 target price on shares of Halliburton in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Halliburton has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.86.

Halliburton Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $33.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The oilfield services company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. Halliburton had a return on equity of 18.36% and a net margin of 8.90%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.58 earnings per share. Halliburton's revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Halliburton Company will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Halliburton's payout ratio is currently 28.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Halliburton news, COO Jeffrey Slocum sold 52,572 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total value of $1,844,751.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 118,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,166,235.70. This trade represents a 30.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Halliburton

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HAL. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Halliburton by 3.9% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,291,311 shares of the oilfield services company's stock worth $41,064,000 after purchasing an additional 48,265 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Halliburton by 496.2% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,801,996 shares of the oilfield services company's stock valued at $57,303,000 after buying an additional 1,499,767 shares in the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Halliburton by 141.0% during the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 1,205 shares of the oilfield services company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Halliburton by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 98,746 shares of the oilfield services company's stock worth $3,140,000 after buying an additional 13,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its stake in Halliburton by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 851,809 shares of the oilfield services company's stock valued at $27,088,000 after acquiring an additional 45,734 shares during the last quarter. 85.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Halliburton Company Profile

Halliburton Company NYSE: HAL is a global provider of products and services for the energy industry. The company supports the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas through technologies and services used throughout the life cycle of a well. Halliburton operates through two primary business segments: Completion and Production, and Drilling and Evaluation. Its offerings include cementing, stimulation, well completion, production enhancement, drilling services, drilling fluids, well testing, wireline and perforating services, formation evaluation, and project management.

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