Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on HAL. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Halliburton from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore upped their price objective on Halliburton from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Halliburton from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on Halliburton from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Zephirin Group lowered Halliburton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.38.

Halliburton Stock Performance

Halliburton stock opened at $34.11 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.73. 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 has a 12-month low of $18.72 and a 12-month high of $37.03.

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

Insider Activity

In other Halliburton news, EVP Lawrence J. Pope sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 419,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,538,550. This trade represents a 19.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Van H. Beckwith sold 54,348 shares of Halliburton stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total transaction of $1,900,006.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 344,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,044,943.60. This represents a 13.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 328,148 shares of company stock worth $11,199,000 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Halliburton

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Halliburton in the fourth quarter worth about $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 in the last quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of Halliburton during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Halliburton in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Halliburton in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.