Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) Trading Down 7.1% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Precision Drilling shares fell 7.1% intraday, trading as low as $90.77 and last at $94.52 on light volume (56,393 shares, about 56% below the average) after a prior close of $101.73.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed-but-positive with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $122.33; notable calls include RBC raising its target to $140 and Loop Capital setting $122.
• The company beat EPS estimates with $1.37 for the quarter but missed on revenue, has a market cap of $1.21B and a negative P/E (‑240.63), and sits above its 50‑day ($92.69) and 200‑day ($76.92) moving averages.

Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE:PDS - Get Free Report) TSE: PD's share price traded down 7.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $90.77 and last traded at $94.5210. 56,393 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 56% from the average session volume of 129,486 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Loop Capital set a $122.00 target price on shares of Precision Drilling in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Precision Drilling from $124.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Precision Drilling from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $122.33.

Precision Drilling Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $92.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.92. The company has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -240.63 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.46.

Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS - Get Free Report) TSE: PD last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The oil and gas company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $349.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $489.80 million. Precision Drilling had a net margin of 0.05% and a return on equity of 4.12%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Precision Drilling Corporation will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Precision Drilling

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PDS. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in Precision Drilling by 2.1% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 6,171 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $607,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in Precision Drilling by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,490 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in Precision Drilling by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. now owns 56,178 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,031,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in Precision Drilling by 52.3% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,188 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Precision Drilling by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,853 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $632,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. 48.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Precision Drilling Company Profile

Precision Drilling Corporation NYSE: PDS is a Calgary, Alberta–based oilfield services company that has provided drilling solutions since its founding in 1951. With more than seven decades of industry experience, the company delivers contract drilling services, directional and horizontal drilling, well servicing, and a suite of specialized equipment designed to meet the evolving needs of exploration and production companies worldwide.

The company's core business activities include operating a fleet of onshore drilling rigs, offering managed pressure drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD) and logging-while-drilling (LWD) services, and providing completion and workover rigs.

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