Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Baker Hughes Company (NASDAQ:BKR) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $59.6087.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Baker Hughes from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Baker Hughes from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Johnson Rice began coverage on Baker Hughes in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th.

Insider Activity at Baker Hughes

In other news, insider Maria Georgia Magno sold 19,150 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.11, for a total value of $1,131,956.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 14,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $862,296.68. The trade was a 56.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Lorenzo Simonelli sold 272,593 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.13, for a total value of $16,663,610.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 672,810 shares in the company, valued at $41,128,875.30. This represents a 28.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 312,594 shares of company stock worth $18,986,302 in the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Baker Hughes

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 1,242.5% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. EFG International AG bought a new stake in Baker Hughes in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in Baker Hughes by 344.1% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Baker Hughes during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Baker Hughes by 104.0% during the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.06% of the company’s stock.

Baker Hughes Stock Performance

BKR opened at $58.97 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $58.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.68, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.83. Baker Hughes has a 1-year low of $33.60 and a 1-year high of $67.00.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $7.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.09 billion. Baker Hughes had a net margin of 9.33% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Baker Hughes will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. Baker Hughes’s payout ratio is currently 35.38%.

Baker Hughes Company Profile

Baker Hughes is an energy technology company that provides a broad portfolio of products, services and digital solutions for the oil and gas and industrial markets. Its offerings span oilfield services and equipment — including drilling, evaluation, completion and production technologies — as well as turbomachinery, compressors and related process equipment used in midstream and downstream operations. The company also supplies aftermarket services, field support and integrated solutions designed to improve asset performance and uptime across the energy value chain.

The firm’s roots trace back to the merger of Baker International and Hughes Tool Company, and more recently it combined with GE’s oil and gas business in 2017 to form Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE); subsequent changes in ownership restored Baker Hughes as an independent publicly traded company.