Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $35.99, but opened at $34.46. Helmerich & Payne shares last traded at $34.04, with a volume of 196,126 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 15th. Evercore ISI raised Helmerich & Payne to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Helmerich & Payne from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Helmerich & Payne presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.88.

Helmerich & Payne Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $32.79 and its 200-day moving average is $36.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $697.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $670.78 million. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 12.39%. Helmerich & Payne’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.09 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 3.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Helmerich & Payne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 38.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,862,362 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $67,306,000 after acquiring an additional 513,647 shares during the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 55.4% in the first quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 1,378,705 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $57,988,000 after acquiring an additional 491,589 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 15.7% in the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,469,609 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $125,392,000 after acquiring an additional 471,420 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 51.7% in the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,189,318 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $42,982,000 after acquiring an additional 405,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Helmerich & Payne by 9.4% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,826,851 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $138,302,000 after buying an additional 327,802 shares in the last quarter. 96.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Helmerich & Payne Company Profile

Founded in 1920, Helmerich & Payne, Inc (H&P) (NYSE: HP) is committed to delivering industry leading levels of drilling productivity and reliability. H&P operates with the highest level of integrity, safety and innovation to deliver superior results for its customers and returns for shareholders.