Bank of New York Mellon Corp Has $51.52 Million Holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 18.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 719,192 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 109,783 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.99% of Weatherford International worth $51,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFRD. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in Weatherford International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Weatherford International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Weatherford International by 643.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 11,606.3% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 1,857 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

WFRD opened at $54.78 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.51. Weatherford International plc has a 52-week low of $52.10 and a 52-week high of $135.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a PE ratio of 8.15, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.60.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.30). Weatherford International had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 9.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFRD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Weatherford International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays cut their price target on Weatherford International from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on Weatherford International from $107.00 to $97.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Weatherford International from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.63.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total value of $1,311,381.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,361.49. This trade represents a 52.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $675,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 21,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,835.04. The trade was a 32.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,692 shares of company stock valued at $6,207,725 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.