Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. Acquires 25,000 Shares

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. purchased 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 2,482,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,562,824.96. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 3.9 %

NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $7.91 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.20 and a beta of 1.99. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $7.03 and a twelve month high of $12.65. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $8.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is presently -12.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James downgraded Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Patterson-UTI Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.63.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. WFA Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 1,443.0% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,441 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,218 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of contract drilling services to oil and natural gas operators in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment provides contract and directional drilling services in onshore oil and natural gas basins, as well as engages in the service and re-certification of equipment for drilling contractors, and provision of electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine and mining industries.