Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) Coverage Initiated at Royal Bank Of Canada

Equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 19.99% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on WFRD. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Weatherford International in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research lowered Weatherford International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Citigroup upped their price target on Weatherford International from $93.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Weatherford International from $111.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Weatherford International from $83.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.33.

Weatherford International Price Performance

NASDAQ:WFRD opened at $87.51 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.19. The company has a 50-day moving average of $94.89 and a 200-day moving average of $79.68. Weatherford International has a 52 week low of $36.74 and a 52 week high of $110.57. The company has a market capitalization of $6.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.78.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.49. Weatherford International had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 28.07%. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Weatherford International will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Weatherford International

In other news, CEO Girish Saligram sold 100,000 shares of Weatherford International stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.50, for a total value of $10,550,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Weatherford International

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Weatherford International by 20.3% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 326,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,369,000 after acquiring an additional 55,183 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Weatherford International by 270.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 19,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,359,000 after purchasing an additional 14,505 shares during the last quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Weatherford International by 110.8% during the second quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 708,180 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,629,000 after purchasing an additional 372,192 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International in the third quarter valued at about $1,014,000. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP increased its holdings in Weatherford International by 6.0% in the third quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 303,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,792,000 after purchasing an additional 17,330 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.23% of the company’s stock.

Weatherford International Company Profile

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.