The Screen · Energy · Oil & Gas Equipment & Services
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.
HLX · the NYSE · USD · 2,212 employees
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, an offshore energy services company, provides specialty services to the offshore energy industry in Brazil, the United States, North Sea, the Asia Pacif…
Screened 2026-08-27 · the tape above runs as of 22:12 UTC · 11 Sep · two dates, stated on purpose · verdict and workings shown in full · never trimmed
The Label · The Season, Not the Day
This name holds its accumulation label.
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. holds its Accumulation at $10.12. The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 45 days.
As held on the ledger · 2026-08-27
Phase
Accumulation
Quantitative state
The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 45 days
Price at the screen
$10.12
Valuation
42.17 trailing · 18.65 forward price to earnings
Values screen
PASS· score 70.0
Beta
1.17
The Workings
Five Screens, Shown in Full
Full pass across all five screens. This security clears the Titan Ethical Standard: its business and its balance sheet both stay inside the lines.
Test
Figure
Limit
What it means
Status
Business activity
Permissible
Core business clean
Its core business isn't built on prohibited lines: no gambling, alcohol, tobacco, weapons, or interest-based lending.
Pass
Debt load
24.07%
Below 33%
Interest-bearing debt is just 24.1% of its assets, well under the one-third ceiling: it does not run on borrowed money.
Pass
Interest-bearing cash
0.00%
Below 33%
Cash held in interest-bearing accounts and securities is 0.0% of assets, under the one-third limit.
Pass
Receivables
28.64%
Below 49%
Money owed to the company is 28.6% of assets, under the 49% limit.
Pass
Revenue purity
0.79%
Below 5%
Only 0.8% of revenue comes from non-compliant sources, under the 5% line.
Pass
Five checks adapted from AAOIFI screening standards: business activity plus four balance-sheet ratios. All five must pass for ethical clearance. Every figure is arithmetic on public accounts, not judgement.
Fair value range in USD, drawn from the 2026-08-27 screen. The gold marker is the market price at the same screen. The price runs 13.1% above the base estimate.
Third-party analyst targets: 4 covering, consensus Buy. The average target sits +28% from the screen price.
Reading the gap · Our more conservative model reads it as fully-to-richly valued here, while the Street is more bullish: a quality-at-a-fair-price name rather than a deep-value one.
Price History & Projections
Where it has been, where the models see it going. History from market close data; projection points are our fair-value estimates and third-party analyst targets, dated to the 2026-08-27 screen.
Fair value and rating are our own model estimates; the Street's range reflects third-party analyst estimates. Analysis, not advice.
The Business, in Plain Words
Offshore Services Crew Faces Thin Returns
Picture a crew heading out in heavy seas to fix rigs that only run when oil prices cooperate. Helix sits in that exact spot, delivering 4% revenue growth and 1% profit margins that leave almost nothing on the table. With return on equity also stuck at 1% and the shares trading 6% above our fair value, the business shows no margin of safety worth taking.
The forward multiple of 17.7 times earnings looks ordinary rather than cheap for a cyclical operator whose earnings peak and trough with rig demand. Analyst targets sit higher, yet the numbers do not suggest durable cash generation or pricing power that would reward patient capital. Ethical checks clear, but that alone does not turn weak returns into an opportunity.
Cyclical energy services often trade on low multiples precisely when earnings are about to roll over, turning an apparent value into a trap. Exposure to volatile offshore spending adds further swings that thin margins cannot absorb. Analysis, not advice.
The risks · The main risks here are ordinary market swings and the chance our fair-value read proves too optimistic.
Plain-English interpretation of our own screen data. Analysis, not advice.
Where & How to Trade
HLX trades on the NYSE. As a listed security it is accessible through almost any international broker offering its home market. New to this, or investing from abroad? Our guide to accessing global markets covers brokers, currencies and the practical steps.
The framework has shifted from markdown to accumulation since the last review. Smart money appears to be quietly building positions. This typically precedes a markup phase. Price has moved up 5.6% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 20% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 40%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 24%. The street (4 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $12.
2026-08-01Markdown$9.58-1.6%Entry 4
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 1.6% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 20% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 40%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 24%. The street (4 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $12.
2026-07-18Markdown$9.74+0.0%Entry 3
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 20% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 40%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 24%. The street (4 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $12.
2026-07-03Markdown$9.74+0.0%Entry 2
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns.
2026-07-02Markdown$9.74Entry 1
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns.
Each entry above was written on its date, before the outcome. A journal you can prune is not a journal.
