Phocas Financial Corp. Sells 452,891 Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Phocas Financial Corp. lessened its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 85.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 79,810 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 452,891 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 5,678 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,358 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 92.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,885 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 3,307 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 25.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,498 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 47.4% in the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 10,010 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 3,221 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock opened at $8.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of -3.28 and a beta of 2.07. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $7.15 and a 52-week high of $12.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.54.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -12.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total value of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total transaction of $588,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,743.68. This trade represents a 71.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PTEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

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.