Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $107.63.

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Weatherford International from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th.

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Weatherford International Price Performance

WFRD stock traded down $2.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $54.37. 1,624,387 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,272,085. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $68.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.69. Weatherford International has a 12 month low of $53.22 and a 12 month high of $135.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.09, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.60.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Weatherford International will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.88%.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction on 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 owns 125,019 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,272,507.23. This trade represents a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was 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 directly owns 11,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $807,179.94. The trade was a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International during the third quarter valued at $571,000. Barclays PLC lifted its position in Weatherford International by 59.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 31,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,663,000 after purchasing an additional 11,680 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in Weatherford International by 1,138.4% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,728,000 after purchasing an additional 29,530 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in Weatherford International by 6.8% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 203,106 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,248,000 after purchasing an additional 13,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Weatherford International by 643.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.