HP shares slide as margin headwinds and fresh downgrades keep pressure on the name

HP Inc. (HPQ) is down 3.6% today. Here is some analysis on what might have caused this price movement.

Analysis: HP’s drop appears tied to renewed concern about 2026 profitability, as rising memory/component costs and ongoing softness in printing keep investors focused on margin risk. Recent analyst downgrades and price-target cuts have also weighed on sentiment, even after HP reported fiscal Q1 results and maintained full-year EPS guidance while flagging results could land toward the low end.

Details:

HP’s fiscal 2026 Q1 report showed revenue growth, but the company highlighted industry headwinds, including increasing memory costs, and indicated it currently expects performance closer to the low end of its full-year ranges.

HP maintained fiscal 2026 non-GAAP EPS guidance of $2.90–$3.20, while also pointing to trade-related costs and mitigation actions as factors in its outlook.

Segment mix continues to matter: Personal Systems grew year over year in Q1, while Printing revenue declined, reinforcing the idea that the print business remains a drag on overall growth.

This could also be because multiple Wall Street firms have recently turned more cautious on HP, citing margin pressure from component inflation and limited near-term catalysts.

Sources:

HP Newsroom, Investing.com, HP Investor Relations (U.S. SEC filings)

Disclaimer: This price movement analysis was generated with the help of AI. Please double-check the information provided for mistakes.

$HPQ Insider Trading Activity

$HPQ insiders have traded $HPQ stock on the open market 5 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 0 have been purchases and 5 have been sales.

Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $HPQ stock by insiders over the last 6 months:

ENRIQUE LORES (President and CEO) has made 0 purchases and 2 sales selling 76,204 shares for an estimated $2,010,653.
ANNELIESE OLSON (Pres Imaging Prtng & Solutions) has made 0 purchases and 2 sales selling 34,880 shares for an estimated $921,440.
KETAN M PATEL (President, Personal Systems) sold 33,321 shares for an estimated $772,713

To track insider transactions, check out Quiver Quantitative's insider trading dashboard.

$HPQ Hedge Fund Activity

We have seen 448 institutional investors add shares of $HPQ stock to their portfolio, and 659 decrease their positions in their most recent quarter.

Here are some of the largest recent moves:

UBS AM, A DISTINCT BUSINESS UNIT OF UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC removed 20,274,407 shares (-70.1%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $451,713,787
DNB ASSET MANAGEMENT AS added 7,498,202 shares (+242.2%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $167,059,940
PACER ADVISORS, INC. removed 6,577,623 shares (-100.0%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $146,549,440
D. E. SHAW & CO., INC. added 5,790,724 shares (+1010.5%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $129,017,330
BLACKROCK, INC. removed 5,076,923 shares (-4.4%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $113,113,844
AQR CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC added 4,542,339 shares (+50.2%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $101,203,312
RENAISSANCE TECHNOLOGIES LLC added 4,267,600 shares (+626.6%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $95,082,128

To track hedge funds' stock portfolios, check out Quiver Quantitative's institutional holdings dashboard.

$HPQ Analyst Ratings

Wall Street analysts have issued reports on $HPQ in the last several months. We have seen 1 firms issue buy ratings on the stock, and 1 firms issue sell ratings.

Here are some recent analyst ratings:

Morgan Stanley issued a "Underweight" rating on 01/20/2026
HSBC issued a "Buy" rating on 10/14/2025

To track analyst ratings and price targets for $HPQ, check out Quiver Quantitative's $HPQ forecast page.

$HPQ Price Targets

Multiple analysts have issued price targets for $HPQ recently. We have seen 12 analysts offer price targets for $HPQ in the last 6 months, with a median target of $20.0.

Here are some recent targets:

Michael Ng from Goldman Sachs set a target price of $16.0 on 02/25/2026
Aaron Rakers from Wells Fargo set a target price of $18.0 on 02/25/2026
Erik Woodring from Morgan Stanley set a target price of $16.0 on 02/25/2026
Tim Long from Barclays set a target price of $16.0 on 02/25/2026
Amit Daryanani from Evercore ISI Group set a target price of $20.0 on 02/25/2026
David Vogt from UBS set a target price of $20.0 on 02/19/2026
Asiya Merchant from Citigroup set a target price of $20.0 on 02/17/2026

This article is not financial advice. See Quiver Quantitative's disclaimers for more information. Note that there may be inaccuracies due to mistakes in ticker-mapping, and other anomalies.