Weatherford International PLC $WFRD Shares Purchased by Gradient Investments LLC

Key Points

• Gradient Investments LLC increased its stake in Weatherford International PLC by 42.1%, acquiring 6,776 additional shares worth approximately $1.15 million at the end of the second quarter.
• Weatherford International reported a quarterly EPS of $1.87, significantly exceeding market expectations of $0.97, despite a 14.3% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• The company's recent dividend payout was $0.25, resulting in an annualized dividend of $1.00 with a yield of 1.6%.

Gradient Investments LLC boosted its stake in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 42.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,856 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,776 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,150,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 55.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 645 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 27,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 20.7% in the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Weatherford International by 546.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 595 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Melius Research assumed coverage on Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $108.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (up previously from $69.00) on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Weatherford International from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Melius began coverage on Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded Weatherford International from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $73.00 in a report on Monday, July 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Weatherford International presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.70.

Weatherford International Trading Down 2.7%

NASDAQ WFRD traded down $1.77 during 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 market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $58.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.25. Weatherford International PLC has a twelve month low of $36.74 and a twelve month high of $98.21.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. Weatherford International's revenue was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Weatherford International's payout ratio 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.