Palo Alto, California-based HP Inc. (HPQ) is a prominent technology company that develops and sells personal computing devices, printers, and related hardware, software, and services for consumers, businesses, and enterprises. With a market cap of $17.3 billion, the company offers products including laser and inkjet printers, scanners, copiers and faxes, personal computers, workstations, storage solutions, and computing and printing systems.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap stocks,” and HPQ perfectly fits that description, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the computer hardware industry. With a strong global distribution network and a large installed base of devices, HP Inc. maintains a significant presence in the PC and printing markets.
However, HPQ has faced challenges and has slipped 37.1% from its 52-week high of $29.89. Over the past three months, HPQ stock has declined 26.3%, underperforming the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLK) 6% decline during the same period.
Shares of HPQ plunged 33.8% on a six-month basis and dipped 37.3% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming XLK’s six-month gains of 3.5% and 33.6% returns over the last year.
To confirm the bearish trend, HPQ has been trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages since late October.
On Feb. 24, HP released its fiscal 2026 first-quarter earnings and its shares dipped marginally. The company posted revenue of $14.4 billion, up 6.9% year over year, supported by strong demand in its Personal Systems segment. Adjusted earnings reached $0.81 per share, surpassing analysts’ expectations. During the quarter, the company continued to return capital to shareholders through $0.30 per share in dividends and $325 million in share repurchases. However, higher memory costs and a cautious forward outlook weighed on investor sentiment, raising concerns about potential margin pressure in the quarters ahead.
In the competitive arena of computer hardware, Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) has taken the lead over HPQ, showing resilience with a 15.6% uptick over the past six months and solid 59.2% gains over the past 52 weeks.
Wall Street analysts are bearish on HPQ’s prospects. The stock has a consensus “Moderate Sell” rating from the 15 analysts covering it. The mean price target of $20.74 implies an upswing potential of 10.4% from the current market prices.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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