Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $107.63.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WFRD. Citigroup cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James decreased their target price 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, Barclays dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Weatherford International Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of WFRD opened at $54.82 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.16, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. Weatherford International has a twelve month low of $51.24 and a twelve month high of $135.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.52.

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

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In related news, EVP Depinder Sandhu sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.41, for a total transaction of $929,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $590,517.72. This represents a 61.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total transaction of $1,311,381.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,208,361.49. This trade represents a 52.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,692 shares of company stock worth $6,207,725. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFRD. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 190.4% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. bought a new stake in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. 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.