Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Lowered to Market Perform Rating by Raymond James

Raymond James downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) from a strong-buy rating to a market perform rating in a research report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on PTEN. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock opened at $8.62 on Monday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52 week low of $7.15 and a 52 week high of $12.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a PE ratio of -3.94 and a beta of 2.09. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $8.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.69.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is currently -14.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total value of $588,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,743.68. This represents a 71.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Patterson-UTI Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,167,871 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,535,000 after purchasing an additional 559,859 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 683,621 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,640,000 after buying an additional 47,640 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $186,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,980,881 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $68,717,000 after acquiring an additional 478,064 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $453,000. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.