Headlands Technologies LLC Buys 5,911 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its position in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 32.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,199 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,911 shares during the quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in Weatherford International by 130.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the third quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Weatherford International by 643.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Weatherford International news, 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 value of $2,944,895.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,272,507.23. The trade was a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total transaction of $346,006.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $807,179.94. This represents a 30.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of WFRD opened at $54.19 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.26. The company has a market cap of $3.95 billion, a PE ratio of 8.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. Weatherford International plc has a 12-month low of $51.24 and a 12-month high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its quarterly earnings results 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, equities analysts forecast that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

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.