Alliancebernstein L.P. Purchases 326,188 Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 66.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 820,362 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 326,188 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $6,776,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PTEN. WFA Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 3,218 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 5,678 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $5.76 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $7.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.06. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $5.12 and a fifty-two week high of $12.15. The company has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.33 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.56%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -12.96%.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other Patterson-UTI Energy news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 48,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.42, for a total value of $357,265.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $634,224.50. The trade was a 36.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James cut Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.38.

Patterson-UTI Energy 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.