HP (NYSE:HPQ) Releases Q1 2026 Earnings Guidance

HP (NYSE:HPQ) issued an update on its first quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 0.730-0.810 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.770. The company issued revenue guidance of -. HP also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.900-3.200 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on HPQ. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of HP from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. UBS Group set a $24.00 price target on HP in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of HP in a report on Monday, December 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded HP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, October 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded HP from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $24.31.

HP Stock Down 4.0%

HP stock opened at $19.03 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $22.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.17. The firm has a market cap of $17.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.21. HP has a 52 week low of $18.32 and a 52 week high of $35.28.

HP (NYSE:HPQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 25th. The computer maker reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. HP had a negative return on equity of 330.68% and a net margin of 4.57%.The business had revenue of $14.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. HP has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.900-3.200 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.730-0.810 EPS. Equities analysts expect that HP will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

HP Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. HP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Enrique Lores sold 41,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.00, for a total value of $1,089,972.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 141,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,677,856. The trade was a 22.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ketan M. Patel sold 33,321 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.19, for a total transaction of $772,713.99. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $801,724.68. The trade was a 49.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 91,969 shares of company stock worth $2,277,993 over the last three months. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

More HP News

Here are the key news stories impacting HP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HP signed a multi‑year licensing deal with Karamba Security to harden its printers, supporting HP’s “most secure printers” positioning and potential for differentiated product/security revenue. HP and Karamba Security Sign Multi-Year Licensing Agreement to Protect HP’s Printers
• Positive Sentiment: Macro/sector tailwind: coverage arguing an “AI‑in‑a‑box” hardware cycle is beginning — SanDisk and Dell signals suggest demand for upgraded PCs/edge hardware that could lift HP’s PC and workstation sales. The AI in a Box Trade: Hardware Is the Next Boom (HPQ)
• Positive Sentiment: Value/income argument: deep‑value writeups highlight HP’s low forward P/E, ~6%+ dividend yield and free cash flow resiliency, suggesting the selloff may present an income/value buying opportunity for long‑term investors. HP: Priced Too Low With A High Yield
• Neutral Sentiment: HP scheduled a live webcast for Q1 fiscal‑2026 results on Feb. 24 — investors will look to the call for clarity on margins, PC/printer trends and progress on cost‑savings targets. HP Inc. to Announce First-Quarter Fiscal 2026 Earnings on Feb 24, 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Leadership disruption: CEO Enrique Lores is leaving to become PayPal’s CEO and the board named director Bruce Broussard as interim CEO — investor uncertainty over strategic continuity and execution risk likely pressured the stock. HP appoints Bruce Broussard as interim CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst pressure: Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” stance and cut its price target to $20, weighing on sentiment and short‑term demand for the shares. B of A Securities downgrades HP (HPQ)
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance and market reaction: HP’s FY‑2026 and Q1 guidance ranges came in slightly below consensus, and market commentary highlights that combination of softer guidance plus executive turnover is driving the near‑term selloff. HP (HPQ) Falls More Steeply Than Broader Market: What Investors Need to Know

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HP

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in HP by 3.3% during the second quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,470 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of HP by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 69,579 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $1,702,000 after buying an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. raised its position in shares of HP by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 20,531 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $559,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its holdings in HP by 2.7% in the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 21,230 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $519,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Capital Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in HP by 3.3% in the third quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30,123 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $820,000 after acquiring an additional 962 shares during the period. 77.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About HP

HP Inc is an American multinational information technology company that designs, manufactures and sells personal computing devices, printers and related supplies and services. Its product portfolio spans consumer and commercial notebooks and desktops, workstations, displays and accessories, as well as an extensive line of printing hardware that includes home, office and production printers. HP also provides consumables such as ink and toner, managed print services, device deployment and lifecycle support, and software for device and print management.

Founded from the original Hewlett‑Packard Company, HP Inc became a separately traded public company in 2015 following a corporate split that created Hewlett Packard Enterprise to focus on enterprise hardware and services.