Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Receives $153.88 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $153.88.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WFRD shares. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America increased their price target on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Raymond James dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $161.00 to $158.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total transaction of $639,397.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Weatherford International

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International during the first quarter worth $29,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Weatherford International during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 189.0% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 539.1% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

WFRD stock opened at $89.70 on Friday. Weatherford International has a one year low of $82.16 and a one year high of $135.00. The firm has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 1.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $111.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $115.25.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.08). Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 49.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Weatherford International will post 6.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.18%.

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.