LPL Financial LLC Cuts Stake in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 106,129 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 11,718 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $877,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% during the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,096,553 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $182,518,000 after acquiring an additional 2,123,659 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,321,667 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $60,477,000 after acquiring an additional 1,743,241 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,636,471 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $79,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $6,029,000. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,549,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. This represents a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. bought 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 2,482,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,562,824.96. This trade represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PTEN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Patterson-UTI Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $11.21.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

PTEN opened at $5.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.38 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $5.12 and a 12-month high of $11.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.98.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.44%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is currently -12.96%.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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.