With a market cap of $21.7 billion, Halliburton Company (HAL) is a provider of products and services to the energy industry. The Houston, Texas-based company operates in two segments: Completion and Production, and Drilling and Evaluation.
Companies valued at $10 billion or more are generally classified as “large-cap” stocks, and Halliburton Company fits this description perfectly. The multinational corporation is one of the world's leading providers responsible for most of the world's fracking operations. Its product service lines include Baroid, drill bits and services, Halliburton project management, landmark software and services, Sperry drilling, testing, and subsea, and wireline and perforating.
The provider of drilling services to oil and gas operators dropped 39.3% from its 52-week high of $41.56. In the last three months, HAL has dipped 4.4%, underperforming the broader Dow Jones Industrials Average's ($DOWI) 1.7% decline.
www.barchart.comonger term, HAL declined 8.1% on a YTD basis, compared to the DOWI's 2.3% decrease. Moreover, shares of Halliburton have slumped 33.7% over the past 52 weeks, performing weaker than the Dow Jones’ nearly 7.2% rise over the same time frame.
The stock has been trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
Despite meeting the Wall Street expectations of Q4 earnings that came in at $0.70 per share, its shares fell 3.6% on Jan. 22. Although, the company reported a revenue of $5.6 billion, missing Street forecasts. Also, HAL attributed the decline to lower stimulation activity in North America and decreased pressure pumping services in Latin America, as its revenue slumped by 13% in North America.
Further, in comparison, Baker Hughes Company (BKR) outpaced HAL. Shares of BKR surged 34.9% over the past 52 weeks and increased 6.5% on YTD basis.
In spite of HAL’s weak price action over the past 52 weeks, analysts remain cautiously optimistic about its prospects. Among the 25 analysts covering the stock, there is a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy,” and it is currently trading above the mean price target of $35.10.
