Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) Short Interest Up 11.5% in June

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 25,460,000 shares, a growth of 11.5% from the May 31st total of 22,830,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,500,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Baker Hughes news, SVP James E. Apostolides sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.88, for a total transaction of $169,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $508,132.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 55,980 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $1,791,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 92,035 shares in the company, valued at $2,945,120. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP James E. Apostolides sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.88, for a total value of $169,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $508,132.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BKR. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,364,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $581,729,000 after purchasing an additional 4,207,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter worth about $551,555,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Baker Hughes by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,445,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,627,000 after buying an additional 745,511 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,669,307 shares of the company’s stock worth $296,319,000 after buying an additional 1,395,083 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Baker Hughes by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,658,242 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,579,000 after buying an additional 204,839 shares during the period. 92.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Baker Hughes Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of BKR stock traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $34.47. 2,796,499 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,814,788. The company has a market cap of $34.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.06. Baker Hughes has a 1-year low of $28.32 and a 1-year high of $37.58.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.03. Baker Hughes had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 11.42%. The business had revenue of $6.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.28 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Baker Hughes will post 2.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Baker Hughes’s dividend payout ratio is 46.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on BKR shares. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Baker Hughes in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Baker Hughes from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Baker Hughes in a report on Monday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Baker Hughes from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $36.00 to $38.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.27.

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.