Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $16.17.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.50 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Benchmark downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 187,916 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.73, for a total value of $2,204,254.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,473,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,011,093.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WBI Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,610,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 632,943 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,836,000 after buying an additional 114,868 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Trading LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,830,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,559,482 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $35,424,000 after buying an additional 425,975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 73.1% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 784,788 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,861,000 after purchasing an additional 331,488 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Patterson-UTI Energy stock opened at $11.34 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 1 year low of $9.70 and a 1 year high of $16.17. The company has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a PE ratio of 11.23, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 2.22. The company’s 50-day moving average is $11.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.62.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. Patterson-UTI Energy had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 10.00%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.68%.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

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.