Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 19,868 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Federated Hermes Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 117,457 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,868 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. owned 0.16% of Weatherford International worth $8,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 130.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its stake in Weatherford International by 190.4% during the 4th 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 Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 643.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company's stock.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

WFRD traded up $1.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.82. The company had a trading volume of 106,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,425,006. Weatherford International plc has a 1 year low of $36.74 and a 1 year high of $135.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a 50-day moving average of $55.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.49.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total transaction of $1,311,381.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,361.49. This represents a 52.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were 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 owns 21,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,423,835.04. This represents a 32.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 87,930 shares of company stock worth $5,861,718 in the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Benchmark dropped their price objective on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $92.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price on Weatherford International from $97.00 to $73.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.75.

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.