Empirical Finance LLC raised its position in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 130.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,076 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,264 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC's holdings in Weatherford International were worth $793,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WFRD. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 551.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,440,837 shares of the company's stock valued at $122,356,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219,553 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,573,003 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,419,000 after purchasing an additional 959,783 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,324,101 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,443,000 after purchasing an additional 310,259 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 402.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 324,482 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,555,000 after purchasing an additional 259,924 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 63.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 461,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,007,000 after purchasing an additional 179,064 shares during the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Weatherford International Stock Down 4.6 %
Shares of 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. Weatherford International plc has a 52 week low of $60.45 and a 52 week high of $135.00. 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's 50 day moving average is $70.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.66. The company has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.50, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60.
Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.
Weatherford International Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.88%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Weatherford International news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total value of $2,944,895.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,272,507.23. This trade represents a 26.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total value of $346,006.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $807,179.94. This trade represents a 30.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 92,692 shares of company stock worth $6,207,725 in the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
WFRD has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Weatherford International from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Benchmark cut their price objective 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 cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $107.63.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on WFRD
About Weatherford International
(
Free Report)
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.
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