WINTON GROUP Ltd Lowers Stock Holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

WINTON GROUP Ltd lessened its stake in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 72.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 15,318 shares of the company’s stock after selling 41,196 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFRD. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new position in Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WFRD shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James cut their target price on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Benchmark reduced their price target on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.63.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In related news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,272,507.23. This trade represents a 26.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total transaction of $1,311,381.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,208,361.49. The trade was a 52.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Stock Down 2.9 %

WFRD opened at $53.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.01. The company has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.90, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. Weatherford International plc has a one year low of $51.24 and a one year high of $135.00. The business’s fifty day moving average is $62.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.97.

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

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.88%.

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.