Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 44,722 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 17.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 217,883 shares of the company’s stock after selling 44,722 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $15,607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in Weatherford International by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 31,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,273,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in Weatherford International by 130.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 190.4% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Weatherford International Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of WFRD stock opened at $42.74 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.64 and a 200-day moving average of $67.80. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.36, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.70. Weatherford International plc has a 1-year low of $36.74 and a 1-year high of $135.00.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 40.65%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Weatherford International plc will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is 16.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other Weatherford International news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 19,425 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 52.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Arunava Mitra sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $675,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,423,835.04. This trade represents a 32.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 87,930 shares of company stock valued at $5,861,718. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WFRD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Raymond James downgraded shares of Weatherford International from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $85.00 to $77.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Weatherford International from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.75.

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.