Yacktman Asset Management LP Sells 842,500 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Yacktman Asset Management LP cut its holdings in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 37.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,384,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 842,500 shares during the quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP owned 1.92% of Weatherford International worth $135,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Weatherford International by 166.5% during the 4th quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 7,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $688,000 after acquiring an additional 17,600 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 29.6% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 726 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund acquired a new position in Weatherford International in the fourth quarter valued at about $544,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Weatherford International by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,284,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,675,000 after purchasing an additional 191,855 shares during the period. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp acquired a new stake in Weatherford International during the fourth quarter worth about $288,000. 97.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Weatherford International

In other news, Director Benjamin Duster sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.98, for a total value of $1,163,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,241,440.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Weatherford International news, Director Benjamin Duster sold 12,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.98, for a total transaction of $1,163,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,241,440.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Girish Saligram sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.57, for a total value of $6,214,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 146,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,213,915.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,455 shares of company stock valued at $13,628,764 over the last ninety days. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFRD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Weatherford International from $134.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday. TheStreet raised shares of Weatherford International from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Weatherford International from $130.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $136.89.

Weatherford International Stock Up 3.7 %

NASDAQ:WFRD traded up $4.60 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $128.25. The company had a trading volume of 682,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 827,772. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $113.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.50. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $55.81 and a twelve month high of $129.70. The firm has a market cap of $9.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 52.88% and a net margin of 8.61%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current year.

About Weatherford International

Weatherford International plc, an energy services company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil, geothermal, and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Drilling and Evaluation; Well Construction and Completions; and Production and Intervention.