Short Interest in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Increases By 33.3%

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 36,900,000 shares, an increase of 33.3% from the May 15th total of 27,680,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 13,520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days. Currently, 9.8% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on PTEN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Susquehanna cut their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $9.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.98, for a total value of $32,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 999,754 shares in the company, valued at $5,978,528.92. This trade represents a 0.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Patterson-UTI Energy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 3,218 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy during the first quarter valued at $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

PTEN stock opened at $6.43 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of -2.60 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The business has a 50 day moving average of $5.92 and a 200-day moving average of $7.35. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 12-month low of $5.12 and a 12-month high of $11.27.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.04. Patterson-UTI Energy had a positive return on equity of 0.81% and a negative net margin of 18.00%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.15 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Patterson-UTI Energy will post -0.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.98%. Patterson-UTI Energy's payout ratio is currently -12.31%.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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.

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