Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $61.56, but opened at $64.20. Weatherford International shares last traded at $63.48, with a volume of 474,959 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WFRD. Melius began coverage on Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler upgraded Weatherford International from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $108.00 target price on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Weatherford International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.70.

Weatherford International Stock Up 0.5%

The company has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $55.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.55.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 34.87% and a net margin of 9.35%.Weatherford International’s quarterly revenue was down 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Weatherford International by 1,002.0% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the first quarter valued at about $445,000. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the first quarter valued at about $522,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Weatherford International by 55.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the first quarter worth about $419,000. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Weatherford International Company Profile

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.