Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Stock Price Down 3% After Analyst Downgrade

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) shares traded down 3% during trading on Friday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $110.00 to $95.00. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. Weatherford International traded as low as $66.23 and last traded at $66.49. 669,107 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 26% from the average session volume of 899,928 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.56.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on Weatherford International from $147.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Piper Sandler began coverage on Weatherford International in a report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $87.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.25.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In related news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total transaction of $521,565.66. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Weatherford International during the 3rd quarter worth about $571,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Weatherford International during the second quarter worth approximately $20,584,000. Merewether Investment Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 38.8% during the second quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 549,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,323,000 after acquiring an additional 153,800 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Weatherford International by 33.0% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 631,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,372,000 after purchasing an additional 156,756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 1,138.4% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,728,000 after purchasing an additional 29,530 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Weatherford International Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50 day moving average of $82.51 and a 200-day moving average of $99.25.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.66 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 6.85 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 14.04%.

Weatherford International Company Profile

Weatherford International plc, an energy services company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil, geothermal, and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Drilling and Evaluation; Well Construction and Completions; and Production and Intervention.