Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust Has $7.43 Million Stake in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust lowered its stake in shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 37.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 60,695 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,401 shares during the quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust owned about 0.08% of Weatherford International worth $7,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFRD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,599,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $877,152,000 after buying an additional 53,017 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Weatherford International by 2.9% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,409,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,730,000 after acquiring an additional 182,120 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its position in Weatherford International by 19.3% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,722,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,240,000 after purchasing an additional 439,700 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Weatherford International by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,124,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,013,000 after purchasing an additional 126,482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Weatherford International in the 4th quarter valued at $89,762,000. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Trading Down 3.5 %

WFRD opened at $90.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.47. Weatherford International plc has a fifty-two week low of $82.16 and a fifty-two week high of $135.00. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $113.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.61.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Weatherford International had a return on equity of 49.69% and a net margin of 9.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Weatherford International plc will post 6.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFRD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James lowered their price target on Weatherford International from $161.00 to $158.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Weatherford International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $153.88.

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.