California State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Position in Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System reduced its Weatherford International stake by 0.4% in the second quarter, selling 367 shares and retaining 83,200 shares valued at approximately $6.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 97.23% of the company.
• Weatherford shares traded around $85.43, well below their 52-week high of $113.15. The company missed quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $0.55 per share versus the $0.90 consensus, while revenue declined 8.2% year over year.
• Company insiders sold 26,094 shares worth about $2.24 million over the past three months. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $114.25, and Weatherford pays a quarterly dividend of $0.275.

California State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 0.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,200 shares of the company's stock after selling 367 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.12% of Weatherford International worth $6,780,800 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International during the second quarter valued at approximately $15,269,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,736,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Weatherford International in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 6.3% in the second quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 64,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,135,000 after acquiring an additional 3,797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the second quarter worth $739,000. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Weatherford International news, Director Jacqueline C. Mutschler sold 4,094 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the director owned 29,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,632,916.50. The trade was a 12.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Neal P. Goldman sold 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total value of $1,357,440.00. Following the sale, the director owned 12,187 shares in the company, valued at $1,033,945.08. The trade was a 56.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,094 shares of company stock worth $2,244,487. Corporate insiders own 2.08% of the company's stock.

Weatherford International Price Performance

WFRD traded up $0.97 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $85.43. 690,022 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,263,020. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The company has a market capitalization of $6.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. Weatherford International PLC has a 1 year low of $60.84 and a 1 year high of $113.15. The business's 50 day moving average price is $88.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.86.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.35). The company had revenue of $1.10 billion during 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 in the prior year, the business earned $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were paid a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WFRD shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Weatherford International from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Weatherford International from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $137.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group raised shares of Weatherford International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $113.00 to $114.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $125.00 to $122.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $114.25.

About Weatherford International

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.