StockNews.com Upgrades Herc (NYSE:HRI) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Herc (NYSE:HRI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on HRI. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Herc from $155.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Herc from $117.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $152.50.

Herc Price Performance

Shares of HRI stock opened at $153.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.27. Herc has a 1-year low of $93.97 and a 1-year high of $171.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $158.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The transportation company reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.29 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $831.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $858.06 million. Herc had a return on equity of 30.21% and a net margin of 10.58%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.44 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Herc will post 14.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Herc Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This is a positive change from Herc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. Herc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.98%.

Insider Activity at Herc

In other Herc news, SVP Tamir Peres sold 3,545 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.10, for a total value of $564,009.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 41,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,560,647.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Herc

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Herc by 213.3% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 235 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Herc by 576.1% in the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 311 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Herc by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 359 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Herc during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV acquired a new stake in Herc in the first quarter valued at approximately $227,000. 93.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.