Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $174.86.

Several research firms have commented on HRI. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Herc from $218.00 to $176.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised Herc from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Herc from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $165.00 to $175.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on Herc from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on Herc from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th.

Herc Trading Up 3.1%

NYSE:HRI opened at $127.31 on Thursday. Herc has a 12-month low of $88.45 and a 12-month high of $188.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.61 and a beta of 2.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.22, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.62.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.67. Herc had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 1.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.87 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Herc will post 7.05 EPS for the current year.

Herc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Herc’s payout ratio is presently 190.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Diversified Management Inc. bought a new position in Herc during the 3rd quarter valued at $386,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Herc during the 2nd quarter valued at $68,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Herc by 42.1% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 17,353 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,487,000 after buying an additional 5,142 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of Herc in the 2nd quarter worth $133,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Herc by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,386 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $485,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.11% of the company’s stock.

About Herc

Herc Holdings Inc is an equipment rental supplier operating under the Herc Rentals brand. The company provides construction, industrial, commercial and government customers with access to equipment and related services without requiring them to purchase and maintain their own fleets.

Its rental fleet includes aerial work platforms, earthmoving equipment, material-handling equipment, trucks and trailers, and general construction tools. Herc Rentals also offers specialty equipment and services for power generation, climate control, pumps, remediation, trench safety, and other specialized project requirements.