Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Downgraded by StockNews.com

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on PTEN. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 6th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.50 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a report on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $15.67.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $10.01 on Friday. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52-week low of $9.68 and a 52-week high of $16.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72 and a beta of 2.18. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $10.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.06.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.02. Patterson-UTI Energy had a net margin of 4.07% and a return on equity of 7.13%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.55, for a total transaction of $1,732,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,007,895 shares in the company, valued at $23,191,187.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blackstone Inc. acquired a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $483,016,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 74.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,194,132 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $597,807,000 after purchasing an additional 18,495,822 shares in the last quarter. Cerberus Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $188,486,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 21,195.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,655,391 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $161,311,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy in the fourth quarter worth $44,911,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

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.