State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Buys 34,897 Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 211,019 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,897 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $1,614,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of PTEN. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,885 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 3,307 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 260,237 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,991,000 after buying an additional 54,884 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 111.5% during the 3rd quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 593,320 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,539,000 after buying an additional 312,805 shares during the period. Olympiad Research LP bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $327,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 12.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,167,871 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,535,000 after acquiring an additional 559,859 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on PTEN shares. Citigroup lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.88.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock opened at $8.28 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $8.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $7.38 and a 12 month high of $12.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.78 and a beta of 2.12.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.61%.

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.