Herc (NYSE:HRI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $181.93 and last traded at $180.04, with a volume of 72080 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $169.07.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HRI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Herc from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Herc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Herc in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $170.75.

Herc Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $149.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $146.13.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The transportation company reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.48 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $965.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.33 million. Herc had a return on equity of 26.99% and a net margin of 10.00%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.00 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Herc Holdings Inc. will post 13.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Herc Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Herc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.97%.

Insider Activity at Herc

In other Herc news, SVP Tamir Peres sold 5,821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.03, for a total value of $925,713.63. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 35,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,632,047.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Herc news, SVP Tamir Peres sold 5,821 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.03, for a total value of $925,713.63. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 35,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,632,047.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Aaron Birnbaum sold 10,000 shares of Herc stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.71, for a total value of $1,467,100.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 38,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,609,016.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herc

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRI. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Herc by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,898,147 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $431,505,000 after acquiring an additional 60,715 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. increased its position in Herc by 172.4% during the 1st quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 5,878 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Herc by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 22,982 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,868,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Herc in the 1st quarter worth approximately $960,000. Finally, Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Herc by 30.5% during the first quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 8,947 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,516,000 after purchasing an additional 2,093 shares in the last quarter. 93.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.