Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Shares Cross Above 50 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $40.90 and traded as high as $42.10. Helmerich & Payne shares last traded at $41.7910, with a volume of 1,195,110 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HP. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Helmerich & Payne from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.36.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.90 and a 200-day moving average of $37.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of -29.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.69.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $987.70 million. Helmerich & Payne had a negative net margin of 3.43% and a negative return on equity of 2.35%. The business's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post -0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Helmerich & Payne's dividend payout ratio is -70.92%.

Insider Transactions at Helmerich & Payne

In related news, SVP Cara M. Hair sold 11,149 shares of Helmerich & Payne stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total value of $493,566.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,024,925.65. The trade was a 7.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Helmerich sold 94,470 shares of Helmerich & Payne stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total transaction of $4,147,233.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $878,000. This trade represents a 82.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 110,673 shares of company stock valued at $4,864,590. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Helmerich & Payne

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the 2nd quarter valued at about $513,336,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,735,765 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $206,660,000 after buying an additional 570,500 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 109.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,676,169 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $60,392,000 after buying an additional 874,823 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its position in shares of Helmerich & Payne by 217.4% during the second quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,526,707 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $49,984,000 after buying an additional 1,045,727 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the second quarter worth about $30,606,000. 96.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Helmerich & Payne

Helmerich & Payne, Inc is a contract drilling company that provides land-based and offshore drilling services to oil and gas exploration and production companies. The company operates drilling rigs and provides related equipment, technology and field services used to drill and develop hydrocarbon wells.

H&P is known for its FlexRig fleet, including AC-powered rigs designed for horizontal and unconventional drilling. Its services may include rig operations, drilling support, automation and other technologies intended to improve operational efficiency, well placement and safety.

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