Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Shares Purchased by Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc.

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) by 89.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,954,738 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 7,989,877 shares during the quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. owned 4.39% of Patterson-UTI Energy worth $140,046,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 3,218 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 5,678 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

PTEN opened at $5.88 on Wednesday. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $5.12 and a twelve month high of $11.70. The firm has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.38 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.97.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. acquired 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $7.88 per share, with a total value of $197,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,482,592 shares in the company, valued at $19,562,824.96. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value of $2,044,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. This represents a 12.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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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