Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $2.55 Million Position in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its stake in shares of Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) by 5.6% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 76,010 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,499 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Baker Hughes were worth $2,546,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BKR. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 466,769 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,954,000 after buying an additional 56,707 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 143,762 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,914,000 after buying an additional 29,763 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter valued at about $377,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd raised its position in Baker Hughes by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 9,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.06% of the company’s stock.

Baker Hughes Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ BKR traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $37.97. The company had a trading volume of 2,377,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,522,924. The company has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Baker Hughes has a one year low of $28.32 and a one year high of $37.99.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.81 billion. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 12.45% and a net margin of 7.37%. Baker Hughes’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.39 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Baker Hughes will post 2.11 EPS for the current year.

Baker Hughes Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 6th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 6th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. Baker Hughes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Baker Hughes in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $40.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Baker Hughes has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.47.

Insider Activity at Baker Hughes

In other Baker Hughes news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 55,980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $1,791,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 92,035 shares in the company, valued at $2,945,120. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Baker Hughes Company 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.