Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Invests $7.82 Million in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 190,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,824,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BKR. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes in the fourth quarter worth approximately $291,289,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Baker Hughes by 34.7% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 10,920,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,775,000 after buying an additional 2,811,940 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new position in Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter worth $107,155,000. Yaupon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Baker Hughes during the third quarter worth $47,296,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Baker Hughes by 217.5% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 1,728,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,901,000 after buying an additional 1,184,036 shares during the last quarter. 92.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BKR shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Baker Hughes from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Baker Hughes from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Baker Hughes presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total transaction of $358,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 173,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,758,730.54. This represents a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Baker Hughes Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKR opened at $43.88 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $44.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Baker Hughes has a 1-year low of $30.93 and a 1-year high of $49.40. The company has a market cap of $43.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.30.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 10.70%. Analysts forecast that Baker Hughes will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is an increase from Baker Hughes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Baker Hughes’s dividend payout ratio is 30.87%.

Baker Hughes Profile

Baker Hughes Company provides a portfolio of technologies and services to energy and industrial value chain worldwide. The company operates through Oilfield Services & Equipment (OFSE) and Industrial & Energy Technology (IET) segments. The OFSE segment designs and manufactures products and provides related services, including exploration, appraisal, development, production, rejuvenation, and decommissioning for onshore and offshore oilfield operations.