Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $10.42 and last traded at $10.4250, with a volume of 1811766 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PTEN. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.11.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $8.16 and a 200 day moving average of $6.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.88 and a beta of 0.71.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by $0.09. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative return on equity of 1.50% and a negative net margin of 1.94%.The company had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Patterson-UTI Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. will post -0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. This is an increase from Patterson-UTI Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -160.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 368,254 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.87, for a total transaction of $2,161,650.98. Following the sale, the director owned 207,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,215,090. This trade represents a 64.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP boosted its position in 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,862 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 127.3% during 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 during the period. First Horizon Corp raised its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 5,554 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,049 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 187.6% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,591 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 4,299 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy provides a comprehensive suite of onshore contract drilling and pressure pumping services to exploration and production companies in North America. The company’s core offerings include land-based drilling rigs, directional drilling, hydraulic fracturing services, downhole tool rental and well-servicing equipment. By integrating drilling and completion capabilities, Patterson-UTI Energy offers operators a streamlined solution designed to improve operational efficiency and well performance.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Patterson-UTI Energy traces its origins to its founding in 1978 and was later incorporated in Delaware in 1996.