Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) EVP Depinder Sandhu Sells 14,000 Shares of Stock

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) EVP Depinder Sandhu sold 14,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.41, for a total transaction of $929,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $590,517.72. The trade was a 61.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Weatherford International Trading Down 4.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ WFRD traded down $3.39 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.54. 2,161,695 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,348,210. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $70.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60. Weatherford International plc has a 52-week low of $60.45 and a 52-week high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. Equities research analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International's payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Institutional Trading of Weatherford International

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 36.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,072 shares of the company's stock worth $1,223,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Weatherford International by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,945 shares of the company's stock valued at $165,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 31,730 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,273,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 7.3% during the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 2,997 shares of the company's stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WFRD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Weatherford International from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Benchmark decreased their target price on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $107.63.

Weatherford International Company Profile

Weatherford International plc, an energy services company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil, geothermal, and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Drilling and Evaluation; Well Construction and Completions; and Production and Intervention.