Swiss National Bank Raises Stock Position in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 143,900 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $10,308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 14,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,273,000 after buying an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of WFRD opened at $52.86 on Friday. Weatherford International plc has a 1-year low of $51.24 and a 1-year high of $135.00. The company has a 50-day moving average of $64.10 and a 200 day moving average of $76.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.87, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

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

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total value of $346,006.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $807,179.94. The trade was a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $2,944,895.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,272,507.23. The trade was a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 92,692 shares of company stock worth $6,207,725. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.63.

Weatherford International 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.