Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $178.2857.

A number of research firms have weighed in on HRI. Citigroup lowered their price target on Herc from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Herc from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on Herc from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Herc from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Herc in a report on Thursday, January 22nd.

Herc Stock Down 1.9%

HRI stock opened at $138.18 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $158.13 and its 200 day moving average is $141.70. The stock has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -767.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17. Herc has a 1-year low of $96.18 and a 1-year high of $188.35.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The transportation company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. Herc had a net margin of 0.02% and a return on equity of 13.21%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Herc will post 12.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Herc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Herc’s payout ratio is currently -1,555.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Herc by 342.1% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 168 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Herc by 53.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 248 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Herc during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Herc in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Herc during the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.11% of the company’s stock.

Herc Company Profile

Herc Holdings Inc (NYSE: HRI) operates as a leading equipment rental provider in North America, offering a wide range of machinery and support services to construction, industrial, government and event sectors. The company’s fleet includes aerial work platforms, earthmoving equipment, material handling solutions, power generation units and specialty tools, enabling clients to scale their operations without the capital expense of ownership. In addition to basic machinery rentals, Herc provides value-added services such as equipment maintenance, on-site safety training and project consulting to help customers optimize productivity and maintain compliance with industry standards.

Founded as part of Hertz Global Holdings, the equipment rental business was spun off as an independent public company in early 2016.