StockNews.com Lowers Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) to Sell

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $12.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James decreased their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.33.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of PTEN stock opened at $12.32 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $11.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.85. Patterson-UTI Energy has a twelve month low of $9.70 and a twelve month high of $16.17. The company has a market capitalization of $5.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 2.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. Patterson-UTI Energy had a return on equity of 10.00% and a net margin of 5.94%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 187,916 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.73, for a total value of $2,204,254.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,473,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,011,093.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.40% 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. WBI Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy in the third quarter valued at $1,610,000. Walleye Trading LLC purchased a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the third quarter valued at about $2,830,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 20.0% during the third quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,559,482 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $35,424,000 after acquiring an additional 425,975 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 73.1% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 784,788 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,861,000 after acquiring an additional 331,488 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 93.0% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 69,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $968,000 after acquiring an additional 33,706 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of contract drilling services to oil and natural gas operators in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment provides contract and directional drilling services in onshore oil and natural gas basins, as well as engages in the service and re-certification of equipment for drilling contractors, and provision of electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine and mining industries.