Phocas Financial Corp. Sells 452,891 Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Phocas Financial Corp. cut its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) by 85.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 79,810 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 452,891 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp.'s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,321,667 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $60,477,000 after purchasing an additional 1,743,241 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 258,836 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,138,000 after purchasing an additional 47,817 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 103.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 84,307 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $645,000 after purchasing an additional 42,824 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 881,036 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,740,000 after purchasing an additional 95,289 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 $13,771,330.09. This represents a 12.93 % 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, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total value of $588,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,743.68. The trade was a 71.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

PTEN traded up $0.20 on Friday, reaching $8.31. The stock had a trading volume of 8,508,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,520,795. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $7.15 and a fifty-two week high of $12.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $8.53 and a 200-day moving average of $8.34. 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 market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.36 and a beta of 2.06.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is -12.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PTEN has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. 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 cut their target price on 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 equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy 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.