Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Stock Price Down 11.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) dropped 11.1% on Thursday after The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on the stock from $11.00 to $8.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Patterson-UTI Energy traded as low as $5.71 and last traded at $5.83. Approximately 1,127,783 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 8,498,093 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.56.

PTEN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James lowered Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Patterson-UTI Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. purchased 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 2,482,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,562,824.96. This trade represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,096,553 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $182,518,000 after acquiring an additional 2,123,659 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 89.1% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,954,738 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $140,046,000 after purchasing an additional 7,989,877 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,636,471 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $79,597,000 after buying an additional 1,144,094 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Up 3.0 %

The firm has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a PE ratio of -2.33 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $7.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.06.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.56%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -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.