Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 63.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 461,790 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 179,064 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.64% of Weatherford International worth $43,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WFRD. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Weatherford International by 364.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Weatherford International during the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 31.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on WFRD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $140.50.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $71.62 on Wednesday. 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 has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.06, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.68. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $71.13 and a twelve month high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.41. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total value of $521,565.66. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Weatherford International

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.