Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $177.20.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Herc from $165.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Herc from $225.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Herc from $234.00 to $201.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herc

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Argent Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Herc by 38.2% in the 4th quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 6,907 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,308,000 after buying an additional 1,910 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Herc in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,377,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Herc during the fourth quarter worth about $62,982,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Herc by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,784 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $527,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in Herc by 49.5% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 52,058 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,299,000 after purchasing an additional 17,236 shares during the period. 93.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Herc Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRI opened at $117.70 on Friday. Herc has a 12 month low of $109.39 and a 12 month high of $246.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.99, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $141.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $180.43.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The transportation company reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.98 by ($0.40). The firm had revenue of $934.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $919.84 million. Herc had a return on equity of 26.48% and a net margin of 5.91%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Herc will post 12.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Herc Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Herc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Herc’s dividend payout ratio is 37.79%.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.