Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Short Interest Update

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,630,000 shares, an increase of 7.8% from the August 15th total of 17,290,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,230,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Baker Hughes Stock Performance

Shares of BKR opened at $34.67 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $35.12 and a 200-day moving average of $33.59. The company has a market cap of $34.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.27. Baker Hughes has a 1 year low of $28.32 and a 1 year high of $39.05.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.08. Baker Hughes had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 12.45%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. Baker Hughes’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes will post 2.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Baker Hughes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 6th were issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. Baker Hughes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.93%.

Insider Transactions at Baker Hughes

In related news, CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold 114,286 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.55, for a total value of $4,405,725.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 616,339 shares in the company, valued at $23,759,868.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Baker Hughes

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Baker Hughes by 32.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,364,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $581,729,000 after buying an additional 4,207,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $551,555,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Baker Hughes by 7.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,898,322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $348,074,000 after acquiring an additional 680,621 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Baker Hughes by 8.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,723,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,801,000 after purchasing an additional 692,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Baker Hughes by 3.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,274,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,005,000 after purchasing an additional 248,122 shares during the period. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on BKR shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Baker Hughes from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Baker Hughes from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.19.

About Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes Company provides a portfolio of technologies and services to energy and industrial value chain worldwide. The company operates through Oilfield Services & Equipment (OFSE) and Industrial & Energy Technology (IET) segments. The OFSE segment designs and manufactures products and provides related services, including exploration, appraisal, development, production, rejuvenation, and decommissioning for onshore and offshore oilfield operations.