Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Price Target Lowered to $9.00 at Susquehanna

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Free Report) had its target price lowered by Susquehanna from $10.00 to $9.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a positive rating on the oil and gas company's stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on PTEN. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective 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. Raymond James downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.21.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 4.5 %

PTEN stock traded up $0.27 during trading on Monday, hitting $6.10. The company had a trading volume of 18,648,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,714,892. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.47 and a beta of 1.60. The company 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 company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 (DPR) is -12.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. This trade represents a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. bought 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. WFA Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,218 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.