Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Capital One upgraded Patterson-UTI to an overweight rating with a $12 price target, sending the stock to a gap-up open (from $9.42 to $9.81) on Monday.
• Several analysts have raised price targets recently (e.g., Stifel, Goldman), but the MarketBeat consensus remains a Hold with an average target of $9.90.
• Patterson-UTI raised its quarterly dividend to $0.10 (annualized $0.40, ~4.1% yield); meanwhile an insider sold ~164,775 shares and institutions own about 97.9% of the stock.

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Monday after Capital One Financial upgraded the stock from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating. The stock had previously closed at $9.42, but opened at $9.81. Capital One Financial now has a $12.00 price target on the stock. Patterson-UTI Energy shares last traded at $9.7050, with a volume of 762,134 shares trading hands.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $9.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 164,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.18, for a total value of $1,677,409.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Patterson-UTI Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 13,901 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 8,717 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,547 shares during the period. Sage Rhino Capital LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 25,371 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 1,575 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 370,476 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,197,000 after acquiring an additional 1,915 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 58.5% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 5,554 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,049 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Up 3.6%

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $9.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.04 and a beta of 0.57.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.10 billion. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative net margin of 1.94% and a negative return on equity of 1.50%. The business's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.13) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. will post -0.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. This is a boost from Patterson-UTI Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is -160.00%.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy provides a comprehensive suite of onshore contract drilling and pressure pumping services to exploration and production companies in North America. The company's core offerings include land-based drilling rigs, directional drilling, hydraulic fracturing services, downhole tool rental and well-servicing equipment. By integrating drilling and completion capabilities, Patterson-UTI Energy offers operators a streamlined solution designed to improve operational efficiency and well performance.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Patterson-UTI Energy traces its origins to its founding in 1978 and was later incorporated in Delaware in 1996.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.