Bank of Montreal Can Purchases 9,607 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 150.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,982 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,607 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can's holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank grew its position in Weatherford International by 190.4% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 392 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. bought a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 643.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $675,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,423,835.04. This trade represents a 32.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total value of $1,311,381.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,899 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,208,361.49. This represents a 52.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 87,930 shares of company stock valued at $5,861,718 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on WFRD shares. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $92.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. Raymond James cut Weatherford International from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $69.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Weatherford International presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $100.75.

Weatherford International Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of WFRD stock traded up $0.26 on Thursday, hitting $42.00. The stock had a trading volume of 839,070 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,099,199. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $52.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Weatherford International plc has a one year low of $36.74 and a one year high of $135.00. The company has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of 6.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.70.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.14. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.21 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. Weatherford International's payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Weatherford International 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.