Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $77.24 and last traded at $78.18, with a volume of 226103 shares. The stock had previously closed at $78.55.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFRD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $161.00 to $158.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $144.88.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.60. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.46.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 6.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 14.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of Weatherford International 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $932,764.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total value of $639,397.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 364.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 31.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 50.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.