Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $16.17.

PTEN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $12.00 price objective for the company. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 187,916 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.73, for a total value of $2,204,254.68. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,473,239 shares in the company, valued at $29,011,093.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PTEN. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 2.2% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 212,072 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,283,000 after acquiring an additional 4,464 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCrest Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $187,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $460,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 15.7% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 223,039 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,453,000 after buying an additional 30,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1.5% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 601,506 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $9,311,000 after buying an additional 9,136 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ PTEN opened at $11.49 on Tuesday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a fifty-two week low of $9.70 and a fifty-two week high of $16.17. The stock has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 2.22. The business has a fifty day moving average of $11.63 and a 200-day moving average of $11.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. Patterson-UTI Energy had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 5.94%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is 31.68%.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

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.