Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. Acquires Shares of 302,862 Weatherford International PLC $WFRD

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. bought a new position in Weatherford International PLC (NASDAQ:WFRD) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 302,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,725,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the second quarter worth $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Weatherford International by 83.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 69.8% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Weatherford International by 2,392.0% in the 2nd quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 623 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Weatherford International by 196.8% during the second quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the period. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Weatherford International Stock Down 0.6%

WFRD opened at $77.66 on Friday. Weatherford International PLC has a 12 month low of $36.74 and a 12 month high of $82.26. The company has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a PE ratio of 14.07 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a 50 day moving average of $74.45 and a 200 day moving average of $64.26.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The company reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.06 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Weatherford International PLC will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Weatherford International Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on WFRD. Zacks Research raised shares of Weatherford International from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Weatherford International from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Weatherford International in a report on Friday, October 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Weatherford International from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Weatherford International in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kristin Ruzicka sold 2,129 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.25, for a total transaction of $164,465.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,673 shares in the company, valued at $1,210,739.25. This represents a 11.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Weatherford International

Weatherford International (NASDAQ: WFRD) is a global oilfield services company specializing in the development, design and manufacturing of equipment and technologies for oil and natural gas drilling, evaluation, completion and production. The company’s core offerings include well construction services such as directional drilling and wellbore positioning, well completion solutions that encompass sand control and zonal isolation technologies, and production enhancement services involving artificial lift systems and well intervention tools.

In addition to its comprehensive service lines, Weatherford provides a range of drilling optimization and reservoir evaluation products.