Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 126,482 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 12.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,124,495 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 126,482 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 1.56% of Weatherford International worth $110,013,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Huntington National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 145.7% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 312 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new position in Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Charles M. Sledge sold 10,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.47, for a total value of $1,234,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,041,049.63. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Girish Saligram sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.57, for a total transaction of $6,214,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 146,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,213,915.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles M. Sledge sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.47, for a total value of $1,234,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,729 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,041,049.63. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on Weatherford International from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Weatherford International from $180.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $134.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $146.11.

Weatherford International Price Performance

WFRD stock traded down $1.48 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $123.65. The company had a trading volume of 500,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 801,643. The company has a market capitalization of $9.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Weatherford International plc has a 1-year low of $55.81 and a 1-year high of $129.70. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $119.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $104.17.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 8.61% and a return on equity of 52.88%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

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.