Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Shares Acquired by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 10,532 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,030,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Huntington National Bank purchased a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in Weatherford International by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 74,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,306,000 after buying an additional 9,705 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Weatherford International by 287.1% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,418,000 after buying an additional 18,330 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the fourth quarter worth $1,986,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 1,564.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 281,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,398,000 after acquiring an additional 264,284 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. TheStreet upgraded Weatherford International from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Weatherford International from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $130.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $134.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 11,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total value of $1,078,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 18,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,785,406.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Scott C. Weatherholt sold 40,455 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.91, for a total transaction of $4,001,404.05. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,019 shares in the company, valued at $12,365,629.29. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 11,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total value of $1,078,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 18,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,785,406.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,455 shares of company stock worth $13,628,764 over the last quarter. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Weatherford International Stock Down 1.1 %

WFRD stock opened at $123.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.50. The company has a market capitalization of $8.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.01, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.73. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $55.81 and a twelve month high of $127.45.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. Weatherford International had a net margin of 8.61% and a return on equity of 52.88%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International 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.