Renaissance Group LLC Acquires 2,017 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Renaissance Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,017 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Group LLC’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $2,345,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 190.4% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. bought a new stake in Weatherford International in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Weatherford International in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Weatherford International by 643.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,272,507.23. This represents a 26.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $675,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,835.04. This represents a 32.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 87,930 shares of company stock valued at $5,861,718 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Trading Down 3.9 %

NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $39.17 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.28. Weatherford International plc has a fifty-two week low of $36.34 and a fifty-two week high of $135.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of 5.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.70.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. Sell-side analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WFRD. Citigroup dropped their target price on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Benchmark cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.75.

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.