Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller Sells 171,200 Shares

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller sold 171,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total value of $5,985,152.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,101,243 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,499,455.28. The trade was a 13.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Halliburton Price Performance

NYSE:HAL opened at $34.17 on Tuesday. Halliburton Company has a 52 week low of $18.72 and a 52 week high of $35.55. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $29.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.42. The company has a market capitalization of $28.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 5.78%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.73 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Halliburton Company will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Halliburton from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on Halliburton from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Halliburton in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $36.00 price target on shares of Halliburton in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.57.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HAL. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Halliburton in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Halliburton in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Halliburton in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Halliburton during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Halliburton during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.23% of the company’s stock.

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.