E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Position in Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) by 33.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,411 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,629 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Baker Hughes were worth $591,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in shares of Baker Hughes by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 93,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,835,000 after buying an additional 3,644 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,501,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at about $291,289,000. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Baker Hughes by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 288,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,835,000 after purchasing an additional 2,586 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Baker Hughes in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,410,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Baker Hughes from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Baker Hughes from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Baker Hughes from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Baker Hughes in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Baker Hughes from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.06.

Baker Hughes Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Baker Hughes stock opened at $42.89 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $42.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.76. Baker Hughes has a 1-year low of $30.44 and a 1-year high of $49.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. Baker Hughes had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 10.70%. Analysts predict that Baker Hughes will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baker Hughes Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from Baker Hughes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Baker Hughes’s payout ratio is presently 30.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Maria C. Borras sold 8,000 shares of Baker Hughes stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total transaction of $358,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 173,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,758,730.54. The trade was a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.