Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Stock Holdings Increased by Cynosure Group LLC

Cynosure Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 73.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,537 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,898 shares during the quarter. Cynosure Group LLC’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Weatherford International during the third quarter valued at $1,353,000. FMR LLC grew its position in Weatherford International by 36.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,573,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $303,419,000 after purchasing an additional 959,783 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its position in Weatherford International by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 14,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,273,000 after buying an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 623 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 1,138.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,728,000 after acquiring an additional 29,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on WFRD shares. Barclays lowered their target price on Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $147.29.

Weatherford International Price Performance

NASDAQ WFRD opened at $81.99 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a PE ratio of 11.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.04. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $77.00 and a twelve month high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.41. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. The business had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. Weatherford International’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Weatherford International plc will post 6.85 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is 14.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other news, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total value of $639,397.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total transaction of $521,565.66. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.60% 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.