Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) Raised to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) (TSE:PD) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on PDS. Zacks Research upgraded Precision Drilling from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Precision Drilling from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research report on Friday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Precision Drilling from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Precision Drilling presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Precision Drilling Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:PDS opened at $106.01 on Friday. Precision Drilling has a 52 week low of $56.10 and a 52 week high of $112.03. The business’s 50 day moving average is $88.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.75. The company has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of -196.31 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Precision Drilling

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PDS. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Precision Drilling by 67.0% during the 1st quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 487,434 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $47,957,000 after acquiring an additional 195,598 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Precision Drilling by 37.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 288,013 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,340,000 after buying an additional 77,775 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Precision Drilling by 24.3% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 373,936 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $36,803,000 after purchasing an additional 73,084 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Precision Drilling by 129.5% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 114,706 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,287,000 after acquiring an additional 64,735 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Precision Drilling by 540.1% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 25,392 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,499,000 after buying an additional 21,425 shares during the period. 48.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Precision Drilling

Precision Drilling Corporation is an oilfield services company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company provides contract drilling and related services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies, with operations serving customers primarily in Canada and the United States as well as selected international markets.

Its Contract Drilling Services segment operates land-based drilling rigs and provides associated equipment, personnel and technical expertise. Precision also offers directional drilling and other technologies designed to support the construction of complex horizontal and extended-reach wells.

Through its Completion and Production Services business, the company provides well servicing, snubbing, rental equipment, camp and catering services, and other support activities used during well completion, maintenance and production.