Weatherford International PLC $WFRD Position Boosted by EFG Asset Management North America Corp.

Key Points

• EFG Asset Management North America Corp. increased its stake in Weatherford International by 24.7%, acquiring a total of 42,117 shares valued at approximately $2,255,000.
• Weatherford International reported a significant earnings surprise with an EPS of $1.87, exceeding estimates by $0.90 but also revealed a 14.3% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• The stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among analysts, with a price target averaging $99.70 and notable ratings from various brokerages.

EFG Asset Management North America Corp. grew its position in shares of Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 24.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,117 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,336 shares during the period. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. owned about 0.06% of Weatherford International worth $2,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Weatherford International during the first quarter worth $27,355,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 162.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 278,830 shares of the company's stock worth $14,641,000 after purchasing an additional 172,731 shares during the period. Atlantic Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 30.7% in the 1st quarter. Atlantic Investment Management Inc. now owns 572,809 shares of the company's stock worth $30,674,000 after buying an additional 134,700 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 396.5% in the 1st quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 275,159 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,735,000 after buying an additional 219,737 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 196.1% in the 1st quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 12,334 shares of the company's stock valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 8,169 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 target price (up previously from $69.00) on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Piper Sandler raised Weatherford International from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $73.00 in a report on Monday, July 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Weatherford International from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Weatherford International from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Melius Research assumed coverage on Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $108.00 target price on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.70.

Weatherford International Price Performance

WFRD stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $61.92. 501,546 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,286,678. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.98. The company has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Weatherford International PLC has a one year low of $36.74 and a one year high of $98.21.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.19 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 34.87%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Weatherford International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.48%.

Weatherford International 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.