Capstone Investment Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 51,664 Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 51,664 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,701,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC owned about 0.07% of Weatherford International at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 59.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 31,349 shares of the company's stock worth $2,663,000 after purchasing an additional 11,680 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 39.3% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,173 shares of the company's stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 2,022 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Weatherford International by 63.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 461,790 shares of the company's stock worth $43,007,000 after acquiring an additional 179,064 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at about $293,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $157,000. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Trading Up 1.1 %

WFRD traded up $0.51 on Friday, hitting $46.07. The company had a trading volume of 1,765,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,155,950. The company's fifty day moving average price is $47.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.82. Weatherford International plc has a 1 year low of $36.74 and a 1 year high of $135.00. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.86, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.73.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Neal P. Goldman bought 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $42.04 per share, for a total transaction of $504,480.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 25,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,064,074.44. The trade was a 90.15 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WFRD. Barclays dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $85.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Benchmark cut their target price on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Weatherford International from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Raymond James lowered shares of Weatherford International from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $69.00 in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.75.

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.