Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Rating Lowered to “Neutral” at The Goldman Sachs Group

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) was downgraded by research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report issued on Friday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a $98.00 price target on the stock, down from their prior price target of $132.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 28.79% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on WFRD. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.50.

Weatherford International Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $76.09 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.47. The firm has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.04. Weatherford International has a 52-week low of $75.79 and a 52-week high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 46.25% and a net margin of 9.65%. Weatherford International’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Weatherford International will post 6.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total transaction of $521,565.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at $932,764.80. The trade was a 35.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Weatherford International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the second quarter valued at approximately $20,584,000. Merewether Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 549,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,323,000 after acquiring an additional 153,800 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 33.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 631,862 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,372,000 after acquiring an additional 156,756 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in Weatherford International by 1,138.4% in the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,728,000 after acquiring an additional 29,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Weatherford International by 7.1% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 92,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,373,000 after acquiring an additional 6,165 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Company 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.