US stock futures steady with China trade talks, Q3 earnings in focus
Investing.com - KeyBanc has reiterated its Sector Weight rating on HP Enterprise (NYSE:HPE), currently valued at $33 billion, following the company’s Strategic and Analytical Meeting (SAM). According to InvestingPro data, HPE has shown remarkable momentum with a 70% surge over the past six months, though current analysis suggests the stock is trading above its Fair Value.
The investment firm expressed that it remained "underwhelmed" with HP Enterprise’s 2026 and long-term financial targets presented at the event, noting that pure-play companies represent higher quality assets in the IT hardware sector. Despite these concerns, HPE maintains a strong dividend track record, having paid dividends for 11 consecutive years, with a current yield of 2.1%.
KeyBanc highlighted concerns about HP Enterprise’s strategic direction in networking, citing a "lack of clarity" on growth drivers in that segment, while also questioning how aggressive the company would be in its server business.
The firm acknowledged that HP Enterprise appears to be prioritizing cost reduction measures and returning free cash flow to shareholders as its main controllable actions.
With the Juniper Networks integration currently underway, KeyBanc believes HP Enterprise needs an "accelerating growth profile" to drive the stock higher from current levels.
In other recent news, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced its fiscal year 2026 earnings guidance, which fell short of analyst expectations. The company projected adjusted earnings per share between $2.20 and $2.40, slightly below the consensus estimate of $2.41. During its Securities Analyst Meeting, HPE also shared plans to enhance its networking capabilities and expand growth in AI infrastructure. Additionally, the company announced a 10% increase in its annual dividend for fiscal year 2026 and authorized an additional $3 billion for share repurchases, totaling approximately $3.7 billion.
On the analyst front, Goldman Sachs raised its price target for HPE to $27 from $25, maintaining a Neutral rating. The firm expects HPE to achieve 5-7% revenue growth for fiscal 2026, based on a pro-forma fiscal 2025 revenue base of around $38 billion. UBS reiterated its Neutral rating with a $23 price target, anticipating HPE to provide a detailed outlook for fiscal year 2026 and a three-year framework. Meanwhile, JPMorgan maintained its Overweight rating with a $30 price target, viewing HPE as an attractive transformation story post-Juniper acquisition, though noting concerns about the company’s past execution challenges.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.