Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 37.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 170,913 shares of the company’s stock after selling 103,659 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.24% of Weatherford International worth $14,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 364.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 358 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the third quarter worth $34,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the third quarter valued at $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 36.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp increased its position in Weatherford International by 1,516.2% during the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 598 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Weatherford International news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total value of $521,565.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $68.58 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $79.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.98 billion, a PE ratio of 9.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.49. Weatherford International plc has a 12 month low of $66.23 and a 12 month high of $135.00.

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

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 14.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on WFRD. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $147.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $87.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.25.

About Weatherford International

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.