Rothschild & Co Redburn Issues Positive Forecast for Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) Stock Price

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) had its target price boosted by Rothschild & Co Redburn from $35.00 to $40.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the oilfield services company’s stock.

HAL has been the subject of several other research reports. Zephirin Group cut Halliburton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Halliburton from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Halliburton from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Halliburton in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.19.

Halliburton Stock Performance

HAL traded down $0.69 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $34.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,077,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,756,965. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market cap of $29.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.77. Halliburton has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $35.85. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.88.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 5.78%.Halliburton’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Halliburton will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. Halliburton’s payout ratio is presently 45.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Halliburton

In other news, EVP Lawrence J. Pope sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total value of $3,225,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 419,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,538,550. The trade was a 19.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Margaret Katherine Banks sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.17, for a total transaction of $88,842.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 14,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $479,849.31. This represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 337,002 shares of company stock worth $11,445,938. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Halliburton

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HAL. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Halliburton in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT lifted its holdings in shares of Halliburton by 196.4% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 981 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Halliburton in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new position in Halliburton during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in Halliburton during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 85.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Halliburton

Halliburton is one of the world’s largest providers of products and services to the energy industry, offering a broad portfolio that supports the lifecycle of oil and gas reservoirs from exploration and drilling through production and abandonment. Founded in 1919 by Erle P. Halliburton as an oil-well cementing company, the firm is headquartered in Houston, Texas and has developed into an integrated oilfield services company serving upstream operators globally.

The company’s activities encompass drilling and evaluation, well construction and completion, production enhancement and well intervention.