Squarepoint Ops LLC Purchases 24,644 Shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI)

Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) by 216.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,024 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,644 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC’s holdings in Herc were worth $4,802,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of Herc by 110.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 43,605 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,492,000 after buying an additional 22,895 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in Herc by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 84,185 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,534,000 after purchasing an additional 14,069 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Herc by 235.5% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 9,366 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,398,000 after purchasing an additional 6,574 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Herc by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 10,812 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,610,000 after buying an additional 2,309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC raised its position in Herc by 231.4% during the fourth quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 7,310 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 5,104 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.11% of the company’s stock.

Herc Stock Performance

HRI opened at $159.49 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.91, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.10. Herc Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.17 and a 1 year high of $171.00. The company has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 13.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 2.07.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $848.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $813.05 million. Herc had a return on equity of 26.99% and a net margin of 10.00%. Research analysts expect that Herc Holdings Inc. will post 13.68 EPS for the current year.

Herc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. Herc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Herc in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered Herc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Herc in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $159.50.

Insider Transactions at Herc

In other Herc news, COO Aaron Birnbaum sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $5,609,016.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, SVP Tamir Peres sold 5,821 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 35,415 shares in the company, valued at $5,632,047.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Aaron Birnbaum sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.71, for a total value of $1,467,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 38,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,609,016.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Herc

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.