Board of the Pension Protection Fund Purchases 17,600 Shares of Halliburton Company $HAL

Board of the Pension Protection Fund raised its position in shares of Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) by 43.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 57,700 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,600 shares during the period. Halliburton comprises about 1.6% of Board of the Pension Protection Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Board of the Pension Protection Fund’s holdings in Halliburton were worth $1,631,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Halliburton in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Halliburton during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in Halliburton during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Halliburton in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Halliburton in the third quarter worth about $32,000. 85.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Halliburton Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE HAL opened at $36.90 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $34.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.79. Halliburton Company has a 52-week low of $18.72 and a 52-week high of $37.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.04. The company has a market cap of $30.90 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.73.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.14. Halliburton had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 19.77%. The company had revenue of $5.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Halliburton Company will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Halliburton from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Halliburton in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Halliburton from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Halliburton from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Halliburton from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jeffrey Allen Miller sold 171,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total transaction of $5,985,152.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,101,243 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,499,455.28. This trade represents a 13.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Timothy Mckeon sold 3,846 shares of Halliburton stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.37, for a total value of $132,187.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 81,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,805,657.47. The trade was a 4.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 357,053 shares of company stock worth $12,178,682. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.