KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $644,000 in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 20,100 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Helmerich & Payne during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Steph & Co. purchased a new stake in Helmerich & Payne in the 4th quarter valued at about $87,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Helmerich & Payne by 82.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Helmerich & Payne by 143.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,703 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 2,181 shares during the period. 96.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of Helmerich & Payne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $40.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down from $48.00) on shares of Helmerich & Payne in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Helmerich & Payne from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.11.

Helmerich & Payne Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:HP opened at $26.50 on Wednesday. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.80 and a fifty-two week high of $44.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $27.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.52, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.43.

Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.02. Helmerich & Payne had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 11.31%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Helmerich & Payne, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helmerich & Payne Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Helmerich & Payne’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John W. Lindsay acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.55 per share, for a total transaction of $551,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 691,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,042,945.70. The trade was a 2.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Belgacem Chariag acquired 37,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,011,600.48. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 54,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,730.48. The trade was a 216.56 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 4.51% of the company’s stock.

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.