Stifel Nicolaus Cuts Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Price Target to $12.00

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $13.00 to $12.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the oil and gas company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price objective points to a potential upside of 96.88% from the company's current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Raymond James cut Patterson-UTI Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $11.21.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $6.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 18,648,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,731,036. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.47 and a beta of 1.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $7.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.00. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 12-month low of $5.12 and a 12-month high of $11.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 48,149 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.42, for a total value of $357,265.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $634,224.50. This represents a 36.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,549,081 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 3,218 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of contract drilling services to oil and natural gas operators in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment provides contract and directional drilling services in onshore oil and natural gas basins, as well as engages in the service and re-certification of equipment for drilling contractors, and provision of electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine and mining industries.