Herc (NYSE:HRI) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.11 EPS

Herc (NYSE:HRI) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The transportation company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.11, FiscalAI reports. Herc had a positive return on equity of 16.32% and a negative net margin of 1.68%.The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion.

Herc Price Performance

HRI opened at $173.43 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.28, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.77 billion, a PE ratio of -68.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.77. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $159.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $139.57. Herc has a 52-week low of $96.18 and a 52-week high of $201.28.

Herc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Herc’s payout ratio is -111.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on HRI. Citigroup raised their price target on Herc from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Herc from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Herc in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. KeyCorp set a $200.00 price target on shares of Herc and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Herc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.43.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herc

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Herc by 11.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,123,437 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $481,040,000 after buying an additional 413,719 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Herc by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 993,833 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $147,480,000 after acquiring an additional 28,024 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Herc by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 825,511 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $108,712,000 after acquiring an additional 235,694 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Herc by 18.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 784,979 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $103,374,000 after acquiring an additional 124,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Herc by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 770,291 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $114,296,000 after purchasing an additional 18,036 shares during the period. 93.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc (NYSE: HRI) operates as a leading equipment rental provider in North America, offering a wide range of machinery and support services to construction, industrial, government and event sectors. The company’s fleet includes aerial work platforms, earthmoving equipment, material handling solutions, power generation units and specialty tools, enabling clients to scale their operations without the capital expense of ownership. In addition to basic machinery rentals, Herc provides value-added services such as equipment maintenance, on-site safety training and project consulting to help customers optimize productivity and maintain compliance with industry standards.

Founded as part of Hertz Global Holdings, the equipment rental business was spun off as an independent public company in early 2016.