Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on PTEN. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $12.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $13.00 to $13.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.09.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN opened at $9.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a PE ratio of -165.33 and a beta of 0.79. Patterson-UTI Energy has a one year low of $5.24 and a one year high of $13.39. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $11.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.61.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The oil and gas company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.03. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative return on equity of 0.58% and a negative net margin of 0.52%. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.10) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.02 EPS for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is -666.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 198,395 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.85, for a total value of $2,549,375.75. Following the sale, the director owned 928,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,934,733.05. This trade represents a 17.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Seth Wexler sold 120,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.75, for a total value of $1,530,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 404,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,158,420.50. This represents a 22.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 1,027,000 shares of company stock valued at $12,698,780 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. bought a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $60,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 39.7% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,096 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,732 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 187.6% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,591 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 4,299 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc is an oilfield services company that provides drilling, completion and production-related services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies. Its operations are primarily focused on onshore oil and gas development in the United States.

The company provides contract land drilling services through a fleet of rigs, as well as directional drilling and related technologies used to guide wellbores. Patterson-UTI also offers pressure pumping and hydraulic fracturing, wireline, well-completion, equipment rental and other services that support the development and maintenance of unconventional wells.

Patterson-UTI expanded its completion-services business through its 2023 merger with NexTier Oilfield Solutions.