Weatherford International plc to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.25 (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 6th,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of 0.25 per share on Wednesday, March 19th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st.

Weatherford International Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of WFRD opened at $65.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.04. The company has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.18, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $71.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.90. Weatherford International has a 52-week low of $60.45 and a 52-week high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. Analysts predict that Weatherford International will post 6.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WFRD shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays cut their price target on Weatherford International from $147.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $87.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Weatherford International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.25.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In related news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $2,944,895.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,272,507.23. This represents a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total transaction of $346,006.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $807,179.94. The trade was a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.