Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) Short Interest Up 23.6% in January

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 32,525,256 shares, a growth of 23.6% from the December 31st total of 26,321,090 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 18,015,354 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 18,015,354 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HAL. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Halliburton from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Halliburton from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Halliburton in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Halliburton from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Halliburton from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Halliburton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.76.

Halliburton Trading Up 1.5%

HAL opened at $34.37 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.97. Halliburton has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $35.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.14. Halliburton had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 5.78%.The firm had revenue of $5.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.73 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Halliburton 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio is 45.03%.

Insider Activity

In other Halliburton news, insider Mark Richard sold 160,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.77, for a total value of $4,443,200.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 452,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,562,425.98. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Lawrence J. Pope sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total transaction of $3,225,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 419,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,538,550. The trade was a 19.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 497,002 shares of company stock valued at $15,889,138. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Halliburton

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HAL. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Halliburton by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 92,754 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $2,353,000 after buying an additional 6,507 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in Halliburton by 39.0% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 73,341 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $1,861,000 after purchasing an additional 20,583 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in Halliburton by 25.0% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 52,045 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $1,320,000 after purchasing an additional 10,408 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Halliburton by 309.1% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 68,946 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $1,749,000 after purchasing an additional 52,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Halliburton in the 1st quarter worth $895,000. 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.