Federated Hermes Inc. Grows Position in Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 1,005.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,056,407 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 960,832 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned about 1.47% of Weatherford International worth $53,148,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in Weatherford International in the first quarter worth approximately $522,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 23.8% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 51,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,783,000 after purchasing an additional 9,981 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in shares of Weatherford International in the first quarter worth $2,356,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Weatherford International during the 1st quarter worth about $3,790,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 47.7% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 414,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,188,000 after buying an additional 133,828 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Stock Performance

Shares of WFRD stock opened at $77.15 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $70.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.07. The stock has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a PE ratio of 13.98 and a beta of 0.79. Weatherford International PLC has a 1 year low of $36.74 and a 1 year high of $81.01.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.03). Weatherford International had a net margin of 8.15% and a return on equity of 28.28%. The business had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 6th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 6th. Weatherford International’s payout ratio is presently 18.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $108.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Weatherford International from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on Weatherford International from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Weatherford International from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.90.

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.