Raising Target on Tech Giant Following Earnings

Last night, HP Inc. (HPQ) reported fourth-quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $0.62 vs. $0.60, much better than company guidance of $0.50 to $0.54.

The upside was driven by sales only declining by 1% instead of 4.5%, as the company’s printing division had a quicker-than-expected recovery from the pandemic weakness. HPQ also gave EPS guidance for the first quarter of $0.64 to $0.70, compared to the expected $0.53.

Given the strong results and outlook, along with the fact that the company still intends to buy back $1 billion in stock per quarter, which is considerable for a company with a market capitalization of $28 billion, I am raising my target price to $24.50. This is still only 10X expected fiscal 2021 EPS of $2.45 versus $2.28 in 2020. My new buy under price for HPQ is $20.