HP (NYSE:HPQ) Earns “Underperform” Rating from Bank of America

HP (NYSE:HPQ)‘s stock had its “underperform” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Bank of America in a research note issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $20.00 price objective on the computer maker’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $26.00. Bank of America‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 1.01% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on HPQ. UBS Group set a $24.00 price target on shares of HP in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of HP from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $21.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of HP from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded HP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of HP in a report on Monday, December 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $24.31.

HP Price Performance

Shares of HP stock opened at $19.80 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.13. HP has a one year low of $18.32 and a one year high of $35.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.47, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.21.

HP (NYSE:HPQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 25th. The computer maker reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $14.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.50 billion. HP had a negative return on equity of 330.68% and a net margin of 4.57%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.93 earnings per share. HP has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.900-3.200 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.730-0.810 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that HP will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other HP news, insider Anneliese Olson sold 16,726 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.83, for a total value of $415,306.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 169 shares in the company, valued at $4,196.27. This represents a 99.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ketan M. Patel sold 33,321 shares of HP stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.19, for a total value of $772,713.99. Following the sale, the insider owned 34,572 shares in the company, valued at $801,724.68. The trade was a 49.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 91,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,277,993 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of HP

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its position in shares of HP by 7.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 1,481,211 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $40,333,000 after buying an additional 101,844 shares during the period. Railway Pension Investments Ltd increased its holdings in HP by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 1,600,015 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $43,568,000 after acquiring an additional 92,400 shares during the period. Maj Invest Holding A S lifted its stake in HP by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Maj Invest Holding A S now owns 5,754,138 shares of the computer maker’s stock worth $156,686,000 after purchasing an additional 210,762 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new position in HP in the 3rd quarter valued at $5,573,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its position in shares of HP by 498.6% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 204,219 shares of the computer maker’s stock valued at $5,561,000 after purchasing an additional 170,104 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.53% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting HP

Here are the key news stories impacting HP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HP extended its multi‑year XGuard licensing deal with Karamba Security to harden its printers versus cyberattacks — a product differentiation point that helps protect recurring print service revenue and enterprise buyers. HP and Karamba Security Sign Multi-Year Licensing Agreement to Protect HP’s Printers
• Positive Sentiment: Macro/sector narrative: analysts and commentators argue HP is a deep‑value play in the emerging “AI‑in‑a‑box” hardware cycle — aging corporate fleets plus AI inference needs could drive PC/server refreshes that benefit HP, while cost cuts and a high dividend cushion downside. The AI in a Box Trade: Hardware Is the Next Boom (HPQ)
• Positive Sentiment: Value/income investors are highlighting HP’s low forward P/E and elevated yield as reasons to buy the dip; several long‑form pieces argue current levels understate free‑cash‑flow resilience and buyback/dividend support. HP: Priced Too Low With A High Yield
• Neutral Sentiment: HP reiterated its FY‑2026 EPS range (2.90–3.20) and Q1 guidance (0.73–0.81) during the leadership transition — reaffirmation reduces one source of near‑term uncertainty but the ranges sit around consensus, so guidance itself is not a catalyst. Does HP’s Sudden CEO Change and Reaffirmed Outlook Reshape the Bull Case For HP (HPQ)?
• Neutral Sentiment: HP scheduled a Feb. 24 webcast for Q1 results — a near‑term event where management under interim leadership can clarify strategy, cost‑savings roadmap and execution milestones. HP Inc. Announces Live Webcast for Q1 Fiscal 2026 Financial Results on February 24, 2026
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Enrique Lores abruptly stepped down and was named PayPal’s CEO; the HP board appointed director Bruce Broussard as interim CEO — leadership turnover is the primary cause of near‑term volatility and investor concern over strategic continuity. HP appoints Bruce Broussard as interim CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and cut HP’s price target to $20 (from $26), signaling reduced near‑term upside from a large sell‑side participant and likely pressuring sentiment and flows. B of A Securities downgrades HP (HPQ)
• Negative Sentiment: Recent trading sessions showed sharper declines than the broader market as investors digest the leadership change and downgraded sentiment; that technical selling has amplified headline-driven moves. HP (HPQ) Falls More Steeply Than Broader Market: What Investors Need to Know

About HP

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.