Baird Financial Group Inc. Acquires 16,605 Shares of Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group increased its Weatherford International stake by 11.9%, purchasing 16,605 shares to own 156,542 shares valued at approximately $12.8 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 97.23% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $114.25, although several firms recently lowered their targets and Zacks Research issued a “Strong Sell” downgrade.
• Weatherford reported quarterly EPS of $0.55, below the $0.90 consensus estimate, while revenue of $1.10 billion exceeded expectations but declined 8.2% year over year. Insiders sold 26,094 shares worth approximately $2.24 million over the past three months.

Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 156,542 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 16,605 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of Weatherford International worth $12,758,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Weatherford International by 1,040.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,244,464 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,392,000 after buying an additional 1,135,338 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 13.8% in the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 171,477 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,218,000 after buying an additional 20,803 shares during the last quarter. GeoSphere Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 70.0% during the 4th quarter. GeoSphere Capital Management LLC now owns 42,500 shares of the company's stock worth $3,326,000 after acquiring an additional 17,500 shares during the period. Dorsey Wright & Associates acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International during the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,247,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,967,000. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WFRD shares. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $154.00 to $151.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Weatherford International from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Weatherford International from $137.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Weatherford International from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.25.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In other news, Director Benjamin Duster, IV sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.09, for a total value of $516,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $963,088.83. This represents a 34.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jacqueline C. Mutschler sold 4,094 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.50, for a total value of $370,507.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 29,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,632,916.50. This trade represents a 12.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 26,094 shares of company stock worth $2,244,487 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.07% of the company's stock.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of Weatherford International stock opened at $88.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 17.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average of $88.66 and a 200-day moving average of $95.08. Weatherford International PLC has a 1-year low of $60.84 and a 1-year high of $113.15.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.35). The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 21.50% and a net margin of 7.66%.Weatherford International's quarterly revenue was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.87 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th were paid a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Weatherford International's payout ratio is currently 21.70%.

Weatherford International Company Profile

Weatherford International plc NASDAQ: WFRD is an energy services company that provides equipment, technology and services to the oil and natural gas industry. Its offerings support the exploration, drilling, completion, production and intervention of onshore and offshore wells.

The company's portfolio includes drilling and well-construction systems, formation evaluation tools, well-completion equipment, production optimization technologies, artificial-lift systems and well-intervention services.

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