Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Shares Sold by Weiss Asset Management LP

Weiss Asset Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 89.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,474 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,954 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP's holdings in Weatherford International were worth $295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WFRD. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 364.9% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in Weatherford International in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 31.0% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 359 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ WFRD traded down $0.89 on Tuesday, reaching $76.74. 626,370 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 900,818. Weatherford International plc has a fifty-two week low of $76.39 and a fifty-two week high of $135.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The business's fifty day moving average price is $85.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.58.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. Weatherford International's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.66 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Weatherford International plc will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFRD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $146.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In related news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,680 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $932,764.80. This trade represents a 35.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

About Weatherford International

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.