Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Price Target Cut to $9.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) had its price objective reduced by Morgan Stanley from $10.00 to $9.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.54.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN opened at $8.38 on Thursday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52-week low of $7.03 and a 52-week high of $12.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.39 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $8.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.20.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently -12.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Patterson-UTI Energy news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at $13,771,330.09. This trade represents a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. purchased 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,482,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,562,824.96. This trade represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Patterson-UTI Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PTEN. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,096,553 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $182,518,000 after buying an additional 2,123,659 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 89.1% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,954,738 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $140,046,000 after acquiring an additional 7,989,877 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,636,471 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $79,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,094 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of contract drilling services to oil and natural gas operators in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment provides contract and directional drilling services in onshore oil and natural gas basins, as well as engages in the service and re-certification of equipment for drilling contractors, and provision of electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine and mining industries.