Halliburton Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:HAL)

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 60,029 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 83% compared to the typical volume of 32,811 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on HAL shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Halliburton from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Capital One Financial lifted their price objective on Halliburton from $25.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on Halliburton in a report on Monday, November 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $35.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Halliburton from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, HSBC set a $30.00 price objective on Halliburton and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lawrence J. Pope sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total transaction of $3,225,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 419,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,538,550. The trade was a 19.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Van H. Beckwith sold 8,854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.89, for a total transaction of $246,938.06. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 333,528 shares in the company, valued at $9,302,095.92. This represents a 2.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 268,854 shares of company stock valued at $7,915,138. 0.56% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Halliburton

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Halliburton by 114.1% in the 4th quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,271 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $573,000 after purchasing an additional 10,803 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Halliburton by 40.2% during the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,753 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Halliburton by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,571 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $327,000 after acquiring an additional 1,166 shares during the last quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Halliburton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $460,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Halliburton by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 17,575 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock worth $497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,626 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.23% of the company’s stock.

Halliburton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HAL traded up $1.15 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $33.21. The company had a trading volume of 20,041,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,572,420. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock has a market cap of $27.95 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04 and a beta of 0.78. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $28.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.08. Halliburton has a 52 week low of $18.72 and a 52 week high of $33.80.

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

Halliburton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Halliburton’s payout ratio is currently 45.03%.

Key Stories Impacting Halliburton

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.