Precision Drilling Co. (NYSE:PDS) Short Interest Up 21.0% in February

Precision Drilling Co. (NYSE:PDS - Get Free Report) TSE: PD saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 226,700 shares, a growth of 21.0% from the January 31st total of 187,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 82,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Precision Drilling Price Performance

PDS traded down $2.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $43.94. The stock had a trading volume of 170,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 69,023. The business has a 50-day moving average of $57.79 and a 200-day moving average of $61.09. Precision Drilling has a one year low of $43.35 and a one year high of $79.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market cap of $602.34 million, a PE ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 2.05.

Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS - Get Free Report) TSE: PD last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The oil and gas company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by ($0.64). Precision Drilling had a net margin of 5.87% and a return on equity of 6.72%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Precision Drilling will post 7.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On Precision Drilling

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PDS. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Precision Drilling by 3,575.9% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 153,800 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $9,395,000 after purchasing an additional 149,616 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Precision Drilling by 28.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 602,954 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $36,832,000 after buying an additional 131,843 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Precision Drilling by 235.8% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 157,433 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $9,621,000 after acquiring an additional 110,546 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Precision Drilling by 33.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 396,072 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $24,188,000 after acquiring an additional 98,836 shares during the period. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC grew its position in Precision Drilling by 190.0% during the 4th quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 81,500 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,982,000 after acquiring an additional 53,400 shares during the last quarter. 48.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on PDS shares. TD Securities lowered Precision Drilling from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Precision Drilling from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday.

About Precision Drilling

Precision Drilling Corporation, a drilling company, provides onshore drilling, completion, and production services to exploration and production companies in the oil and natural gas and geothermal industries in North America and the Middle East. The company operates through Contract Drilling Services and Completion and Production Services segments.