Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) CAO Desmond J. Mills Sells 19,425 Shares

Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,361.49. This trade represents a 52.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Weatherford International Price Performance

WFRD stock opened at $67.90 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.52. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a PE ratio of 10.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60. Weatherford International plc has a one year low of $60.45 and a one year high of $135.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (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%. On average, analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 6.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 14.88%.

Institutional Trading of Weatherford International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 364.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 130.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFRD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Benchmark reduced their price target on Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.25.

Weatherford International Company Profile

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.