Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Stock Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $10.68 and traded as high as $11.02. Patterson-UTI Energy shares last traded at $10.97, with a volume of 5,981,050 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PTEN. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Barclays increased their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.50 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Patterson-UTI Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.95.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $4.16 billion, a PE ratio of -182.83 and a beta of 0.79.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The oil and gas company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative return on equity of 0.58% and a negative net margin of 0.52%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.10) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. will post 0.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Patterson-UTI Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently -666.67%.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, CEO William Hendricks, Jr. sold 250,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.91, for a total transaction of $2,977,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,042,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,325,865.34. This trade represents a 10.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Seth Wexler sold 120,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.75, for a total value of $1,530,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 404,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,158,420.50. The trade was a 22.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 1,027,000 shares of company stock worth $12,698,780 over the last quarter. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $60,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 39.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,096 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 1,732 shares during the period. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the second quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $68,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy provides contract drilling and related services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies. Its offerings include land-based drilling rigs, directional drilling, pressure pumping and other well-completion services, as well as equipment and technologies used in drilling operations. The company serves customers across major U.S. oil and gas regions, including the Permian Basin and other active shale areas. Its operations combine services that support wells through multiple stages, from drilling to completion.

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