Investors Purchase High Volume of H&E Equipment Services Put Options (NASDAQ:HEES)

H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:HEES) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 2,308 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,096% compared to the average volume of 193 put options.

H&E Equipment Services Price Performance

NASDAQ:HEES traded down $0.75 on Wednesday, hitting $89.54. The company had a trading volume of 2,325,761 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,912,189. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a PEG ratio of 13.05 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.75. H&E Equipment Services has a 52 week low of $40.92 and a 52 week high of $90.66.

H&E Equipment Services (NASDAQ:HEES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.00 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $384.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $388.18 million. H&E Equipment Services had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 25.46%. H&E Equipment Services’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that H&E Equipment Services will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

H&E Equipment Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. H&E Equipment Services’s payout ratio is currently 27.92%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On H&E Equipment Services

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HEES. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in H&E Equipment Services in the second quarter worth $37,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in H&E Equipment Services in the third quarter worth $84,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in H&E Equipment Services in the second quarter worth $109,000. L.M. Kohn & Company acquired a new stake in H&E Equipment Services in the third quarter worth $217,000. Finally, Scientech Research LLC acquired a new stake in H&E Equipment Services in the second quarter worth $203,000. 84.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target (down previously from $62.00) on shares of H&E Equipment Services in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.25.

About H&E Equipment Services

H&E Equipment Services, Inc engages in the provision of equipment services, which focus on heavy construction and industrial equipment. It operates through the following segments: Equipment Rentals, New Equipment Sales, Used Equipment Sales, Parts Sales, and Services. The Equipment Rentals segment focuses on renting construction and industrial equipment.