Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Stock Price Down 6% – Here’s What Happened

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)’s stock price dropped 6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $5.82 and last traded at $5.8450. Approximately 1,260,907 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 10,448,219 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PTEN shares. Zacks Research upgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 25th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $7.28.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Down 3.0%

The stock has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a PE ratio of -16.03 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $6.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 21st. The oil and gas company reported ($0.38) EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $191.70 million for the quarter. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative net margin of 2.81% and a negative return on equity of 2.65%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. will post -0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is presently -88.89%.

Institutional Trading of Patterson-UTI Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PTEN. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 360.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,934 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,862 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 127.3% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,970 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 3,343 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $54,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 41.0% during the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 7,983 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 2,323 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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.