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

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $46.30 and last traded at $46.79, with a volume of 562070 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WFRD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Weatherford International from $92.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Benchmark cut their target price on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.75.

Weatherford International Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.88%.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total value of $346,006.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,109 shares in the company, valued at $807,179.94. This represents a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $675,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,423,835.04. This represents a 32.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,692 shares of company stock worth $6,207,725 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the third quarter valued at about $571,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $546,000. Amundi grew its holdings in Weatherford International by 154.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 38,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,813,000 after purchasing an additional 23,685 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in Weatherford International by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 500,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,815,000 after buying an additional 43,182 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the fourth quarter valued at $7,215,000. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

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.