Trexquant Investment LP Acquires 148,720 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 138.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 255,993 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 148,720 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.35% of Weatherford International worth $18,337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WFRD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Weatherford International by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,702,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $551,760,000 after buying an additional 270,775 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,777,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,877,000 after purchasing an additional 144,396 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,267,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $192,555,000 after purchasing an additional 68,553 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Weatherford International by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 917,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,723,000 after purchasing an additional 204,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter valued at about $65,678,000. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 44,505 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $2,944,895.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,019 shares in the company, valued at $8,272,507.23. This trade represents a 26.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 4,762 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was 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 represents a 30.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725 over the last ninety days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the company. Barclays cut their target price on Weatherford International from $92.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Weatherford International from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.75.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

WFRD opened at $53.55 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $61.68 and its 200 day moving average is $74.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $3.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.97, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.61. Weatherford International plc has a 12-month low of $51.24 and a 12-month high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is presently 14.88%.

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.