Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) Hits New 1-Year High After Dividend Announcement

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The company traded as high as $35.61 and last traded at $35.1830, with a volume of 1558238 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.77.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Halliburton’s payout ratio is presently 45.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on HAL. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Halliburton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Halliburton from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Halliburton from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Halliburton from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.95.

Halliburton Stock Up 1.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $29.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.69 and its two-hundred 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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 19.77%. The business’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.73 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Halliburton Company will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Margaret Katherine Banks sold 2,600 shares of Halliburton stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director directly owned 14,043 shares in the company, valued at $479,849.31. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Van H. Beckwith sold 54,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total value of $1,900,006.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 344,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,044,943.60. This trade represents a 13.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 337,002 shares of company stock valued at $11,445,938. 0.56% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Halliburton

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HAL. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Halliburton in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 196.4% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 981 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Halliburton during the third quarter worth $25,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in Halliburton during the third quarter worth $25,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Halliburton in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.23% of the company’s stock.

Halliburton Company 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.