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

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $8.00.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PTEN. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (down previously from $7.00) on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of PTEN opened at $8.50 on Friday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 12-month low of $5.10 and a 12-month high of $9.03. The stock has a market cap of $3.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.00 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50-day moving average of $7.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.22.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by $0.09. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative net margin of 1.94% and a negative return on equity of 1.50%. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.13) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Patterson-UTI Energy will post -0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This is a boost from Patterson-UTI Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is presently -128.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 368,254 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.87, for a total transaction of $2,161,650.98. Following the sale, the director owned 207,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,215,090. This trade represents a 64.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sourcerock Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 109.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 13,803,775 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $81,856,000 after buying an additional 7,205,652 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 176.6% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 9,228,022 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $47,801,000 after acquiring an additional 5,891,956 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 110.8% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 10,559,219 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $64,517,000 after acquiring an additional 5,551,276 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 121.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 8,320,544 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $50,839,000 after purchasing an additional 4,558,445 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 97.7% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 8,989,351 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $46,565,000 after purchasing an additional 4,442,700 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy provides a comprehensive suite of onshore contract drilling and pressure pumping services to exploration and production companies in North America. The company’s core offerings include land-based drilling rigs, directional drilling, hydraulic fracturing services, downhole tool rental and well-servicing equipment. By integrating drilling and completion capabilities, Patterson-UTI Energy offers operators a streamlined solution designed to improve operational efficiency and well performance.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Patterson-UTI Energy traces its origins to its founding in 1978 and was later incorporated in Delaware in 1996.