Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $11.63.

Several research firms recently commented on PTEN. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. StockNews.com cut Patterson-UTI Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 12th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total transaction of $588,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at $238,743.68. This represents a 71.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 35.9% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 19,972,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $152,793,000 after acquiring an additional 5,275,525 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,980,881 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $68,717,000 after purchasing an additional 478,064 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 6,069,499 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $62,880,000 after purchasing an additional 778,581 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,430,082 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $41,540,000 after buying an additional 494,250 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 4.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN opened at $9.33 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Patterson-UTI Energy has a one year low of $7.15 and a one year high of $12.65. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $8.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of -4.26 and a beta of 2.09.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -14.61%.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

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.