Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Stock Price Down 13.9% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) traded down 13.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $39.78 and last traded at $39.09. 96,801 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 1,026,592 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Weatherford International Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.41. The firm has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 expect that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,702,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $551,760,000 after buying an additional 270,775 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Weatherford International by 295.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,945,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $425,894,000 after acquiring an additional 4,443,823 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,402,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,375,000 after acquiring an additional 298,811 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Weatherford International by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,638,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,657,000 after purchasing an additional 65,931 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,777,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,877,000 after purchasing an additional 144,396 shares in the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.