Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Shares Bought by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD - Free Report) by 31.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 669,040 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 159,160 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.92% of Weatherford International worth $47,923,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Weatherford International by 181.7% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,303,007 shares of the company's stock worth $93,334,000 after buying an additional 840,456 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,402,833 shares of the company's stock worth $315,375,000 after purchasing an additional 298,811 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $560,000. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 33,453 shares of the company's stock worth $2,396,000 after purchasing an additional 4,908 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Weatherford International by 282.1% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,556 shares of the company's stock valued at $684,000 after acquiring an additional 7,055 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company's stock.

Weatherford International Price Performance

NASDAQ:WFRD traded up $0.77 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $49.65. 624,567 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,154,832. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock's 50-day moving average is $47.58 and its 200-day moving average is $64.52. The firm has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 7.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.73. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $36.74 and a twelve month high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.14. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Weatherford International's payout ratio is 16.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Neal P. Goldman acquired 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.04 per share, with a total value of $504,480.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 25,311 shares in the company, valued at $1,064,074.44. This trade represents a 90.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFRD has been the subject of several research reports. Benchmark decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James lowered shares of Weatherford International from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $73.00 to $69.00 in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $85.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.63.

Weatherford International Company 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.