Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.08

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 5th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.08 per share by the oil and gas company on Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd.

Patterson-UTI Energy has increased its dividend payment by an average of 58.7% annually over the last three years. Patterson-UTI Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 160.0% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect Patterson-UTI Energy to earn $0.13 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $0.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 246.2%.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 4.2 %

Patterson-UTI Energy stock traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $8.98. The stock had a trading volume of 11,221,083 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,208,198. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $8.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $8.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.32. Patterson-UTI Energy has a twelve month low of $7.15 and a twelve month high of $12.65. The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.64 and a beta of 2.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Patterson-UTI Energy news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total transaction of $588,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at $238,743.68. This represents a 71.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PTEN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Raymond James lowered shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $11.63.

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.