Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) Shares Down 7.1% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE:PDS) (TSE:PD) fell 7.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $84.06 and last traded at $82.9550. 15,115 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 130,714 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on PDS. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Precision Drilling from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 22nd. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target (up from $81.00) on shares of Precision Drilling in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Precision Drilling from $124.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Precision Drilling from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Precision Drilling currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.33.

Precision Drilling Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -213.60 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $91.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.89.

Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) (TSE:PD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The oil and gas company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.26. Precision Drilling had a net margin of 0.05% and a return on equity of 4.12%. The company had revenue of $349.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $489.80 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Precision Drilling Corporation will post 7.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Precision Drilling

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FIL Ltd raised its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 27,294.7% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 850,331 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $61,017,000 after purchasing an additional 847,227 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 0.6% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 735,460 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $41,265,000 after purchasing an additional 4,236 shares during the period. Aegis Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Aegis Financial Corp now owns 504,059 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $36,221,000 after purchasing an additional 51,700 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Precision Drilling by 24.9% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 483,937 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,262,000 after acquiring an additional 96,339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Precision Drilling in the fourth quarter worth $20,979,000. Institutional investors own 48.86% of the company’s stock.

Precision Drilling Company Profile

Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE: PDS) is a Calgary, Alberta–based oilfield services company that has provided drilling solutions since its founding in 1951. With more than seven decades of industry experience, the company delivers contract drilling services, directional and horizontal drilling, well servicing, and a suite of specialized equipment designed to meet the evolving needs of exploration and production companies worldwide.

The company’s core business activities include operating a fleet of onshore drilling rigs, offering managed pressure drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD) and logging-while-drilling (LWD) services, and providing completion and workover rigs.