Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Price Target Cut to $9.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) had its target price decreased by Morgan Stanley from $10.00 to $9.00 in a report issued on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the oil and gas company's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on PTEN. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Raymond James cut Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.54.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN traded up $0.03 during trading on Thursday, hitting $8.22. 6,755,135 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,317,785. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $8.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.20. 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 company has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.33 and a beta of 1.99. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 1 year low of $7.03 and a 1 year high of $12.65.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is presently -12.96%.

Insider Activity at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 48,149 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 85,475 shares of the company's stock, valued at $634,224.50. This trade represents a 36.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,096,553 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $182,518,000 after buying an additional 2,123,659 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 89.1% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,954,738 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $140,046,000 after acquiring an additional 7,989,877 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,636,471 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $79,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,094 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% 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.