Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 50.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,750 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,750 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $985,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. KBC Group NV raised its position in Weatherford International by 10.4% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,945 shares of the company's stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Weatherford International by 364.9% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 281 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its position in Weatherford International by 1.9% during the third quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 14,994 shares of the company's stock worth $1,273,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new position in Weatherford International during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.23% of the company's stock.

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Weatherford International Trading Down 7.2 %

NASDAQ WFRD traded down $4.04 during trading on Monday, reaching $52.07. 1,274,614 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,282,571. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $67.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.64. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. Weatherford International plc has a fifty-two week low of $51.47 and a fifty-two week high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. Analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.88%.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In related news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $2,944,895.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,019 shares in the company, valued at $8,272,507.23. This represents a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $675,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,423,835.04. This trade represents a 32.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Weatherford International from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays cut their target price on Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $107.63.

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.