Woodside Energy Group (NYSE:WDS) Shares Down 7.8% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Shares fell 7.8% on Friday to about $22.00 (trading as low as $22.10) on roughly 559,013 shares, ~54% below the stock's average daily volume.
• The company paid a $0.59 dividend on March 27 (record date March 6), reported in the article as a 594.0% dividend yield.
• Analyst and ownership activity is mixed: Wall Street Zen upgraded WDS to a "hold" while MarketBeat's average rating is "Buy"; insider Mark Anthony Abbotsford sold 7,500 shares (a 23.46% reduction) and insiders own 0.04% of the stock, with institutional ownership at only 3.17% despite several recent stake increases.

Woodside Energy Group Ltd (NYSE:WDS - Get Free Report) was down 7.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $22.10 and last traded at $22.0010. Approximately 559,013 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 1,222,589 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on WDS. Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodside Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Woodside Energy Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Woodside Energy Group presently has an average rating of "Buy".

Woodside Energy Group Price Performance

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Woodside Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 594.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Mark Anthony Abbotsford sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.06, for a total value of $180,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 24,467 shares in the company, valued at $588,676.02. This trade represents a 23.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Woodside Energy Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barometer Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Woodside Energy Group by 71.7% in the third quarter. Barometer Capital Management Inc. now owns 129,306 shares of the company's stock worth $1,946,000 after acquiring an additional 54,000 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Woodside Energy Group by 63.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 109,312 shares of the company's stock worth $1,645,000 after buying an additional 42,472 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased a new position in Woodside Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $418,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC lifted its position in Woodside Energy Group by 268.8% during the third quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 20,423 shares of the company's stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 14,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in Woodside Energy Group during the third quarter worth approximately $371,000. 3.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Woodside Energy Group Company Profile

Woodside Energy Group NYSE: WDS is an Australia-based energy company focused on the exploration, development, production and marketing of oil and natural gas, with a strong emphasis on liquefied natural gas (LNG). The company's activities span the upstream value chain, including exploration and appraisal of hydrocarbon resources, development and operation of production facilities, and the sale and delivery of hydrocarbons to global customers.

Woodside's operations center on conventional oil and gas projects and large-scale LNG processing and export, supported by project management, engineering and commercial trading capabilities.

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