/HP%20Inc%20ink-by%20Ammatar%20via%20Shutterstock.jpg)
With a market cap of $27.3 billion, Palo Alto, California-based HP Inc. (HPQ) is a global leader in personal computing, printing, and related technologies. The company operates through three segments—Personal Systems, Printing, and Corporate Investments—offering products and services such as PCs, workstations, printers, 3D printing, and business incubation projects.
Companies worth more than $10 billion are generally labeled as “large-cap” stocks and HP fits this criterion perfectly. Serving consumers, SMBs, large enterprises, and sectors like government, healthcare, and education, HP has regional headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland (EMEA) and Singapore (Asia Pacific).
However, the personal computer and printer maker has dipped 27.4% from its 52-week high of $39.79. Over the past three months, shares of HPQ have declined 14.6%, which lags behind the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund's (XLK) dip of 10.2% during the same period.
In the longer term, HPQ has dropped 11.4% on a YTD basis, underperforming XLK’s 7.4% decline. Moreover, shares of HPQ have decreased nearly 5% over the past 52 weeks, compared to XLK’s 4.8% gain over the same time frame.
HPQ stock has been trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages since December 2024.
Shares of HPQ slipped 6.8% following its Q1 2025 earnings release on Feb. 27, as adjusted EPS of $0.74 missed the consensus estimate and declined 9% year-over-year. The company issued a weaker-than-expected Q2 profit outlook, forecasting adjusted EPS of $0.75 - $0.85. Additionally, HP’s Printing segment revenue fell 2%, and total PC units sold declined 1%, raising concerns about consumer demand softness. Investors were also cautious about the impact of rising U.S. tariffs on China, increased restructuring costs, and upcoming workforce reductions.
In comparison with its rival, Arista Networks Inc (ANET) has outperformed HPQ, with a 22.6% increase over the past 52 weeks. Nevertheless, Arista Networks saw a dip of 23% on a YTD basis, a steeper decline than HPQ.
Despite HPQ’s underperformance, analysts are moderately optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the 14 analysts covering the stock, and it is currently trading below the mean price target of $36.75.
