Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $40.01 Million Position in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,844,347 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 323,524 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.24% of Patterson-UTI Energy worth $40,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 1,352,840 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of 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 worth $60,477,000 after purchasing an additional 1,743,241 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 103.2% during the third 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 last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 258,836 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,138,000 after buying an additional 47,817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 64.5% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 18,963 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $145,000 after buying an additional 7,432 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Down 1.9 %

PTEN traded down $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $8.11. 9,257,949 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,045,787. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $7.15 and a fifty-two week high of $12.65. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $8.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $8.35. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.28 and a beta of 2.07.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.95%. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is -12.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $11.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $238,743.68. This represents a 71.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at $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. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.