Acadian Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC invested approximately $3.79 million in Weatherford International PLC, acquiring 70,834 shares during the first quarter, representing 0.10% of the company's total stock.
• Weatherford International recently reported earnings of $1.87 per share, significantly surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.97, although revenue decreased 14.3% compared to the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, yielding an annualized dividend of $1.00, with a payout ratio of 15.48%.

Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 70,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,790,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Weatherford International as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Weatherford International by 546.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 595 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 503 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in Weatherford International by 30,600.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 614 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 612 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 55.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 645 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 188.6% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,036 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 1,002.0% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFRD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Weatherford International from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Barclays reduced their price target on Weatherford International from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Melius Research initiated coverage on Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler raised Weatherford International from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target (up from $69.00) on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.70.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WFRD traded down $1.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $63.73. The stock had a trading volume of 1,988,741 shares, compared to its average volume of 792,326. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $58.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.25. Weatherford International PLC has a twelve month low of $36.74 and a twelve month high of $98.21. The firm has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.78.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 34.87% and a net margin of 9.35%.The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 6th. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.48%.

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.