Zacks Research Downgrades Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) to Hold

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $77.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Weatherford International from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Barclays lifted their price target on Weatherford International from $81.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Weatherford International from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Friday, October 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.70.

Weatherford International Trading Down 3.0%

NASDAQ WFRD opened at $84.11 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 15.24 and a beta of 0.79. Weatherford International has a 1-year low of $36.74 and a 1-year high of $91.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $78.23 and a 200-day moving average of $67.45. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The company reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 28.28% and a net margin of 8.15%.Weatherford International’s revenue was down 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.06 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Weatherford International will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In related news, EVP Kristin Ruzicka sold 2,129 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.25, for a total transaction of $164,465.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,210,739.25. This represents a 11.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Weatherford International during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Weatherford International in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 83.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 556 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 69.8% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American National Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 2,392.0% during the 2nd quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 598 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Weatherford International Company Profile

Weatherford International (NASDAQ: WFRD) is a global oilfield services company specializing in the development, design and manufacturing of equipment and technologies for oil and natural gas drilling, evaluation, completion and production. The company’s core offerings include well construction services such as directional drilling and wellbore positioning, well completion solutions that encompass sand control and zonal isolation technologies, and production enhancement services involving artificial lift systems and well intervention tools.

In addition to its comprehensive service lines, Weatherford provides a range of drilling optimization and reservoir evaluation products.