Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Stock Price Down 16% – What’s Next?

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)’s share price fell 16% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $7.25 and last traded at $7.19. 1,526,245 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 8,302,349 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on PTEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Raymond James lowered shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.54.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.29 and a beta of 1.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $8.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.18.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.65%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -12.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Patterson-UTI Energy news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,330.09. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 48,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.42, for a total transaction of $357,265.58. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 85,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $634,224.50. This trade represents a 36.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 89.1% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,954,738 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $140,046,000 after buying an additional 7,989,877 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,817,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,096,553 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $182,518,000 after buying an additional 2,123,659 shares during the period. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $14,403,000. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.