Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 156,559 Shares of H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:HEES)

Clearbridge Investments LLC cut its stake in shares of H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:HEES) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,119,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 156,559 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 5.79% of H&E Equipment Services worth $103,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HEES. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of H&E Equipment Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $343,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in H&E Equipment Services by 7.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 571,947 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,842,000 after purchasing an additional 41,749 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in H&E Equipment Services by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 44,175 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,150,000 after purchasing an additional 2,238 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its position in shares of H&E Equipment Services by 227.7% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 2,749 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of H&E Equipment Services during the 3rd quarter worth $524,000. 84.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

H&E Equipment Services Price Performance

NASDAQ HEES opened at $94.79 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The company has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of 24.06 and a beta of 1.94. H&E Equipment Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $40.93 and a 52 week high of $101.28. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $92.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.96.

H&E Equipment Services (NASDAQ:HEES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.18. H&E Equipment Services had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The company had revenue of $384.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $372.50 million. Research analysts predict that H&E Equipment Services, Inc. will post 3.25 earnings per share for the current year.

H&E Equipment Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. H&E Equipment Services’s payout ratio is 32.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on HEES. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of H&E Equipment Services in a report on Saturday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $92.00 price target (up previously from $60.00) on shares of H&E Equipment Services in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, H&E Equipment Services has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.33.

About H&E Equipment Services

H&E Equipment Services, Inc engages in the provision of equipment services, which focus on heavy construction and industrial equipment. It operates through the following segments: Equipment Rentals, New Equipment Sales, Used Equipment Sales, Parts Sales, and Services. The Equipment Rentals segment focuses on renting construction and industrial equipment.