Empowered Funds LLC Sells 22,729 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Empowered Funds LLC cut its holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,553 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,729 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.10% of Weatherford International worth $5,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 31.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 359 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its position in Weatherford International by 8.2% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 1,585 shares of the company's stock valued at $188,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Weatherford International by 50.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 382 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Weatherford International by 23.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 918 shares of the company's stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in Weatherford International by 20.7% in the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 1,063 shares of the company's stock valued at $129,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Price Performance

NASDAQ:WFRD traded down $1.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $81.86. 726,137 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,219,882. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $87.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.95 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.60. Weatherford International plc has a 1-year low of $77.00 and a 1-year high of $135.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.41. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 46.25% and a net margin of 9.65%. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.66 earnings per share. Weatherford International's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.04%.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In other news, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total transaction of $639,397.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total value of $521,565.66. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,680 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WFRD. Bank of America reduced their target price on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Raymond James dropped their target price on Weatherford International from $161.00 to $158.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Weatherford International from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.29.

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.