Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Sells 197,584 Shares of Halliburton Company $HAL

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC decreased its position in shares of Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) by 53.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 172,242 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock after selling 197,584 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Halliburton were worth $4,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HAL. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Halliburton during the third quarter worth $216,000. Capital Advisors Inc. OK purchased a new position in Halliburton during the 3rd quarter worth $223,000. American National Bank & Trust increased its position in Halliburton by 565.7% during the 3rd quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 9,000 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 7,648 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Halliburton by 6.0% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 15,949 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAM Holding AG purchased a new stake in Halliburton in the third quarter valued at about $325,000. 85.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Halliburton Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HAL opened at $29.59 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.15. The stock has a market cap of $24.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.59 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Halliburton Company has a 12 month low of $18.72 and a 12 month high of $30.40.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $5.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 20.12%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Halliburton Company will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.03%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Van H. Beckwith sold 8,854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.89, for a total value of $246,938.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 333,528 shares in the company, valued at $9,302,095.92. This represents a 2.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Mark Richard sold 160,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.77, for a total value of $4,443,200.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 452,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,562,425.98. This trade represents a 26.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on HAL. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on Halliburton in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Halliburton from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Rothschild Redb upgraded shares of Halliburton to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Halliburton from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, HSBC set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Halliburton and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.05.

Halliburton Profile

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.