Marshall Wace LLP Raises Holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) by 310.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,287,644 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 973,799 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.33% of Patterson-UTI Energy worth $10,636,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 1,330,350 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $10,989,000 after acquiring an additional 84,950 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 90,190 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 28,601 shares during the period. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 184,300 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,522,000 after buying an additional 21,642 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 40,711 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $103,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of PTEN opened at $5.88 on Tuesday. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $5.12 and a 1-year high of $11.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.98. The stock has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.38 and a beta of 1.60.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is currently -12.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PTEN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Raymond James downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.21.

Insider Activity at Patterson-UTI Energy

In related news, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. acquired 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,482,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,562,824.96. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 48,149 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.42, for a total transaction of $357,265.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 85,475 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $634,224.50. The trade was a 36.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of contract drilling services to oil and natural gas operators in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment provides contract and directional drilling services in onshore oil and natural gas basins, as well as engages in the service and re-certification of equipment for drilling contractors, and provision of electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine and mining industries.

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