StockNews.com Lowers Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on PTEN. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $12.50 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a positive rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Patterson-UTI Energy presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $12.71.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $7.89 on Friday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52-week low of $7.45 and a 52-week high of $14.26. The company has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.60 and a beta of 2.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.50. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.93.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). Patterson-UTI Energy had a return on equity of 4.49% and a net margin of 2.28%. The company had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 28.5% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,031 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. InTrack Investment Management Inc grew its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. InTrack Investment Management Inc now owns 32,950 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 1,037 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 119.5% in the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,401 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,307 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 320.7% during the first quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 2,091 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,594 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Rhino Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 15.8% in the second quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 12,623 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $131,000 after acquiring an additional 1,724 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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.