Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $114.50 According to Brokerages

Shares of Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $114.50.

Several brokerages have weighed in on WFRD. Weiss Ratings lowered Weatherford International from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Weatherford International from $137.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on Weatherford International from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Weatherford International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th.

Weatherford International Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ WFRD opened at $78.44 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $88.62 and its 200-day moving average is $93.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.47, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.05. Weatherford International has a one year low of $60.84 and a one year high of $113.15.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.35). Weatherford International had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 21.50%. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.87 EPS. Weatherford International’s quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Weatherford International will post 5.22 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given a $0.2750 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 21.70%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Benjamin Duster, IV sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.09, for a total transaction of $516,540.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 11,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $963,088.83. This represents a 34.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jacqueline Mutschler sold 4,094 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.50, for a total transaction of $370,507.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,093 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,632,916.50. This trade represents a 12.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 26,094 shares of company stock valued at $2,244,487 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 1,040.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,244,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,392,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135,338 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at $61,399,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter worth about $46,899,000. Canoe Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the first quarter worth approximately $50,052,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Weatherford International by 12.4% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,760,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $166,505,000 after buying an additional 194,654 shares during the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Weatherford International

Weatherford International plc is an energy services company that provides equipment, technology and services to the oil and natural gas industry. Its offerings support the exploration, drilling, completion, production and intervention stages of the well life cycle, helping energy companies develop and manage onshore and offshore assets.

The company’s portfolio includes drilling and formation-evaluation services, well construction and completion technologies, production optimization, artificial-lift systems, well intervention and pressure-control services.