HP (NYSE:HPQ) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

HP (NYSE:HPQ) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The computer maker reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.17, FiscalAI reports. HP had a net margin of 4.45% and a negative return on equity of 581.36%. The business had revenue of $15.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.44 billion. HP updated its FY 2026 guidance to 3.190-3.290 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance to 0.690-0.790 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from HP’s conference call:

• HP sees AI inference shifting toward a hybrid model, with workloads distributed across devices, on-premises systems, and the cloud. The company argues that local processing can reduce token costs while improving data sovereignty, security, and privacy.
• HP believes AI PCs could support meaningful cost savings, citing an estimated $650,000 per 1,000 employees for basic local queries and potentially more as devices run larger models and additional agentic workloads.
• Enterprise adoption may lag hardware capabilities because many IT departments have not yet established policies governing which workloads should run on-device versus in the cloud. Software integration, governance, and security remain important prerequisites for broader deployment.
• HP is positioning itself beyond PC hardware through three layers: intelligent devices, a connected workplace ecosystem, and IT management and security tools such as its Workforce Experience Platform and Wolf Security stack.
• Management expects agentic AI to create a large premiumization opportunity for PCs, potentially enabling new software and services revenue in addition to higher-value hardware as customers seek improved ROI from AI deployments.

HP Stock Up 3.7%

Shares of NYSE HPQ traded up $1.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $30.62. 21,261,047 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,302,463. HP has a 1 year low of $17.56 and a 1 year high of $32.19. The stock has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a P/E/G ratio of 4.74 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.96 and a 200 day moving average of $22.55.

HP Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 9th. HP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.28%.

Insider Activity at HP

In other HP news, insider David P. Mcquarrie sold 21,048 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.98, for a total value of $631,019.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 39,580 shares in the company, valued at $1,186,608.40. This trade represents a 34.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 52,620 shares of company stock worth $1,478,622. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in HP by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 114,169 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $2,793,000 after buying an additional 13,265 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its stake in shares of HP by 2.7% during the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 21,230 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $519,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of HP by 6.4% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 145,337 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $3,555,000 after acquiring an additional 8,779 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in HP by 70.5% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 731,574 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $17,894,000 after purchasing an additional 302,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in HP during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $233,000. 77.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about HP

Here are the key news stories impacting HP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HP signed a multi-year, global cross-licensing agreement with Huawei covering certain Wi-Fi patents. The deal could provide HP access to useful connectivity technology and helped improve sentiment despite Huawei’s presence on the U.S. entity list. HP partners with U.S.-blacklisted Huawei for licensing the Chinese company’s WiFi tech
• Positive Sentiment: The earnings preview highlights continued PC demand and potential revenue growth, with analysts forecasting approximately $14.39 billion in quarterly revenue. Investors are also watching whether pricing and margin performance can offset industry pressures. HP Q3 2026 earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: HP was scheduled to report fiscal third-quarter results after the market close on Aug. 26. Analysts expected earnings of about $0.66 per share, and the company had declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share. The report and management’s outlook are the next major catalysts. HP likely to report lower Q3 earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Options traders are positioning for a potentially large move around earnings, indicating elevated uncertainty rather than a clear directional view. HP earnings preview: Options traders brace for big move
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts were expecting lower fiscal third-quarter earnings than the prior-year period, creating downside risk if HP misses estimates or gives a weaker outlook. Unusually heavy trading in long-dated HPQ put options also signals that some investors are hedging against longer-term weakness. HP results and unusual options activity

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on HPQ shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on HP from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of HP from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on HP from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of HP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on HP from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $24.17.

HP Company Profile

HP Inc is an American multinational information technology company that designs, manufactures and sells personal computing devices, printers and related supplies and services. Its product portfolio spans consumer and commercial notebooks and desktops, workstations, displays and accessories, as well as an extensive line of printing hardware that includes home, office and production printers. HP also provides consumables such as ink and toner, managed print services, device deployment and lifecycle support, and software for device and print management.

Founded from the original Hewlett‑Packard Company, HP Inc became a separately traded public company in 2015 following a corporate split that created Hewlett Packard Enterprise to focus on enterprise hardware and services.