Traders Buy High Volume of Halliburton Call Options (NYSE:HAL)

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 60,029 call options on the company. This is an increase of 83% compared to the average daily volume of 32,811 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HAL shares. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Halliburton from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Capital One Financial upped their price target on shares of Halliburton from $25.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Halliburton in a report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price target on Halliburton from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Halliburton in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.82.

Halliburton Stock Performance

NYSE HAL traded up $1.15 on Wednesday, hitting $33.21. The stock had a trading volume of 20,041,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,572,420. The company’s 50-day moving average is $28.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $27.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04 and a beta of 0.78. Halliburton has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $33.80.

Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The oilfield services company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $5.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.39 billion. Halliburton had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 20.12%. Halliburton’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.73 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Halliburton will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Halliburton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Halliburton news, EVP Van H. Beckwith sold 8,854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.89, for a total value of $246,938.06. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 333,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,302,095.92. This trade represents a 2.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Mark Richard sold 160,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.77, for a total transaction of $4,443,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 452,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,562,425.98. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 268,854 shares of company stock valued at $7,915,138 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Halliburton

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HAL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Halliburton by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 105,363,599 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $2,147,310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,617,696 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Halliburton by 81.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 91,030,451 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $2,239,349,000 after acquiring an additional 40,969,139 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Halliburton by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 30,287,989 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $617,269,000 after acquiring an additional 346,218 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Halliburton by 9.4% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 26,004,682 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock valued at $639,715,000 after acquiring an additional 2,238,983 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Halliburton by 0.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,342,963 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $453,461,000 after purchasing an additional 92,549 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.23% of the company’s stock.

Key Halliburton News

Here are the key news stories impacting Halliburton this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat on both EPS and revenue: adjusted EPS of $0.69 beat consensus and revenue of $5.66B topped estimates, which traders are treating as confirmation of resilience. Halliburton Beats Q4 Estimates as International Revenue Soars
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cash flow: the company reported roughly $1.2B of operating cash flow and ~$875M of free cash flow in Q4, supporting buybacks and dividends that boost shareholder return potential. Halliburton Company’s Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts reacted positively — several shops raised price targets and ratings (examples: Stifel and Capital One boosted targets to $35 and kept Buy/Overweight), which likely lifted sentiment. Stifel: price target raised to $35
• Positive Sentiment: International strength and margin resilience: management highlighted international revenue growth (offsetting North America weakness) and operating margin improvement, supporting better-than-feared profitability. Halliburton beats estimates for fourth-quarter profit (Reuters)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and prepared remarks may contain incremental guidance or color on regional demand and technology initiatives — investors should watch the full transcript for management commentary. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Potential Venezuelan opportunity: the company posted job listings that hint at a possible re-entry to Venezuela; this is a potential long-term catalyst but comes with geopolitical and sanction risks. Halliburton takes step toward possible Venezuela return (MSN)
• Negative Sentiment: North America remains a drag: North America revenue declined (~7% reported by the company), which tempers the upside and keeps growth lumpy near-term. Halliburton Stock Pops After Earnings Beat. Why North America Remains a Drag (Barron’s)
• Negative Sentiment: Profit dynamics mixed: some outlets note net income and certain operating metrics slipped year-over-year or were uneven across segments; investors should watch upcoming quarters for sustainability of margins and cash flow. Halliburton Profit Slips Despite Higher Revenue (WSJ)

Halliburton Company Profile

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.