Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Weatherford International has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Zacks Research, reflecting increased confidence in the company's performance.
• Despite this upgrade, Barclays has reduced its price target on the stock from $77.00 to $73.00 while maintaining an "overweight" rating, indicating mixed views among analysts.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.87, greatly exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.97, demonstrating strong financial performance.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 24th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Weatherford International in a research note on Friday, October 10th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. Melius Research started coverage on Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $108.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price objective (up previously from $69.00) on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Melius began coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.90.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $63.33 on Monday. Weatherford International has a 1-year low of $36.74 and a 1-year high of $92.69. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $62.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.79.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 34.87% and a net margin of 9.35%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Weatherford International will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Weatherford International by 4.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,050,495 shares of the company's stock worth $431,104,000 after purchasing an additional 347,584 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 712.8% during the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,646,034 shares of the company's stock valued at $82,812,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443,512 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 2.0% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,485,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,562,000 after purchasing an additional 29,840 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 13.1% during the first quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,474,131 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,940,000 after purchasing an additional 171,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Weatherford International by 67.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,201,544 shares of the company's stock worth $64,343,000 after buying an additional 482,352 shares during the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Weatherford International

Weatherford International plc, an energy services company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil, geothermal, and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Drilling and Evaluation; Well Construction and Completions; and Production and Intervention.

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