Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) have earned an average rating of “Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $153.88.

A number of research firms have recently commented on WFRD. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Weatherford International from $130.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Bank of America raised their target price on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Raymond James lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $161.00 to $158.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Weatherford International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

NASDAQ WFRD opened at $108.09 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. Weatherford International has a twelve month low of $82.16 and a twelve month high of $135.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $117.72 and a 200 day moving average of $115.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.49, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.63.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 49.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Weatherford International will post 6.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Weatherford International by 31.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Weatherford International by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,030,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its stake in Weatherford International by 8.2% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 1,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC raised its position in Weatherford International by 1.1% in the first quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 11,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,307,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 50.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

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.