Investors snapped up shares of HP Inc. on Friday after the company indicated that it expects to have a buoyant and profitable 2018.
The stock was up as much as 7.8% and set a 52-week high of $22 a share in regular trading on Friday, and finished the session up 6.4%.
The bump followed HP's annual analyst meeting on Thursday, where the company delivered a strong profit forecast that topped Wall Street expectations.
HP said it expects to earn $1.69 to $1.79 per share in its fiscal 2018 year, above the $1.66 per share average earnings estimate according to the Wall Street Journal.
The company also estimated at least $3 billion in free cash flow for fiscal 2018 — 50% to 75% of which it intends to return to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Roughly 27 million shares of HP traded hands on Friday, compared to the stock's average trading volume of 9.5 million shares.
HP is the consumer computer and printer company formed in 2015 after the larger company Hewlett-Packard split off from its enterprise division, now a separate company called HP Enterprise.
NOW WATCH: The 5 best hidden features from the latest iPhone update
See Also:
- Microsoft and Amazon struck a brilliant partnership to take on Google in the next big thing for cloud computing
- This addictive free paperclip game is also a terrifying lesson in how artificial intelligence will make us unnecessary
- IBM wants lawmakers to protect dreamers by the end of the year and is going all out to persuade them
SEE ALSO: Hewlett Packard Enterprise is reportedly laying off 5,000 workers globally
