AXQ Capital LP Raises Position in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

AXQ Capital LP lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 65.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,070 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,332 shares during the quarter. AXQ Capital LP’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $257,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 1,717 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 5,678 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter worth $85,000. Finally, Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $85,000. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Patterson-UTI Energy

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on PTEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

PTEN stock opened at $8.38 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $8.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.19. The firm has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.39 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.54. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.03 and a 1 year high of $12.65.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -12.96%.

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.