Short Interest in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Drops By 22.1%

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 19,640,000 shares, a drop of 22.1% from the March 15th total of 25,210,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 11,050,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days. Approximately 5.2% of the company's stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. bought 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,482,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,562,824.96. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $153,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 199.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 62,188 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 41,418 shares during the period. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 351,781 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,892,000 after buying an additional 31,671 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC bought a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $117,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 102.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 13,592 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,891 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Raymond James cut shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $11.21.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $6.10. 18,648,839 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,714,892. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.00. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52 week low of $5.12 and a 52 week high of $11.70. The firm has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.47 and a beta of 1.60.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. Patterson-UTI Energy's dividend payout ratio is -12.96%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.