Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $46.30 and last traded at $46.79, with a volume of 562070 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WFRD shares. Raymond James reduced their target price on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Benchmark decreased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $92.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. 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 data from MarketBeat, Weatherford International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.75.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $74.12. The company has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 14.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.66, for a total transaction of $346,006.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $807,179.94. This trade represents a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total transaction of $675,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,423,835.04. This represents a 32.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 92,692 shares of company stock worth $6,207,725. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 130.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Weatherford International by 190.4% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. acquired a new stake in Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

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.