Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Shares Sold by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG reduced its stake in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) by 33.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 514,785 shares of the company’s stock after selling 257,378 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in Baker Hughes were worth $21,112,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Baker Hughes in the fourth quarter valued at about $829,092,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter worth about $291,289,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Baker Hughes by 34.7% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 10,920,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $394,775,000 after buying an additional 2,811,940 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new position in Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $107,155,000. Finally, Yaupon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Baker Hughes during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,296,000. 92.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baker Hughes Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BKR opened at $43.08 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $44.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.79. Baker Hughes has a 1 year low of $30.93 and a 1 year high of $49.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. Baker Hughes had a net margin of 10.70% and a return on equity of 14.58%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Baker Hughes will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from Baker Hughes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Baker Hughes’s payout ratio is currently 30.87%.

Insider Transactions at Baker Hughes

In other news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total transaction of $358,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 173,302 shares in the company, valued at $7,758,730.54. This trade represents a 4.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BKR has been the subject of several research reports. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Baker Hughes from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Baker Hughes from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Baker Hughes from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.06.

Baker Hughes Company Profile

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.