Inceptionr LLC Buys Shares of 6,920 Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Inceptionr LLC purchased a new stake in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 6,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $474,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Holocene Advisors LP increased its position in Weatherford International by 712.8% during the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,646,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,812,000 after buying an additional 1,443,512 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 1,005.3% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,056,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,148,000 after purchasing an additional 960,832 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Weatherford International during the second quarter worth $41,542,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Weatherford International by 1,084.6% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 686,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,513,000 after purchasing an additional 628,100 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Weatherford International by 103.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,165,753 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,772,000 after purchasing an additional 591,694 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Trading Up 0.2%

Weatherford International stock opened at $92.69 on Thursday. Weatherford International PLC has a 1 year low of $36.74 and a 1 year high of $110.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.77 and its 200-day moving average is $78.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.19. The company has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63 and a beta of 0.78.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.49. Weatherford International had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 28.07%. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This is a positive change from Weatherford International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is currently 18.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Girish Saligram sold 100,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.50, for a total value of $10,550,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WFRD shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Weatherford International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Weatherford International from $93.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Weatherford International from $83.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.50.

Weatherford International Profile

Weatherford International (NASDAQ: WFRD) is a global oilfield services company specializing in the development, design and manufacturing of equipment and technologies for oil and natural gas drilling, evaluation, completion and production. The company’s core offerings include well construction services such as directional drilling and wellbore positioning, well completion solutions that encompass sand control and zonal isolation technologies, and production enhancement services involving artificial lift systems and well intervention tools.

In addition to its comprehensive service lines, Weatherford provides a range of drilling optimization and reservoir evaluation products.