New York State Common Retirement Fund Raises Stock Holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 203,106 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 13,007 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.28% of Weatherford International worth $17,248,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFRD. First Hawaiian Bank purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,653,000. Entropy Technologies LP grew its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 79.7% during the first quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 11,985 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,383,000 after buying an additional 5,315 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Weatherford International by 107.2% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 23,527 shares of the company's stock worth $2,715,000 after acquiring an additional 12,170 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Weatherford International by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,409,020 shares of the company's stock worth $739,730,000 after acquiring an additional 182,120 shares during the period. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $20,584,000. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Weatherford International from $155.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $144.88.

Insider Activity

In other Weatherford International news, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total value of $639,397.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total transaction of $521,565.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $932,764.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % 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, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total transaction of $639,397.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Weatherford International Price Performance

Shares of Weatherford International stock traded up $8.04 on Wednesday, reaching $89.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,099,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 917,430. Weatherford International plc has a 52-week low of $77.00 and a 52-week high of $135.00. The company has a market capitalization of $6.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $89.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.97.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 46.25% and a net margin of 9.65%. Weatherford International's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. Analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.74 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th 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 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 6th. Weatherford International's payout ratio is 14.04%.

Weatherford International 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.