Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Price Target Raised to $11.00

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $9.00 to $11.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 28.43% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on PTEN. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Tudor Pickering downgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $6.00 price objective (down from $7.00) on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $6.00 price target (down from $7.00) on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $7.39.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Up 4.8%

PTEN stock traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $8.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,465,861 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,634,617. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.30 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52-week low of $5.10 and a 52-week high of $9.30.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by $0.09. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative return on equity of 1.49% and a negative net margin of 1.94%.The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Patterson-UTI Energy’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy will post -0.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Patterson-UTI Energy

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 368,254 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.87, for a total transaction of $2,161,650.98. Following the transaction, the director owned 207,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,215,090. This trade represents a 64.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 360.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,934 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,862 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 127.3% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,970 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 3,343 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 58.5% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 5,554 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,049 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

Patterson-UTI Energy provides a comprehensive suite of onshore contract drilling and pressure pumping services to exploration and production companies in North America. The company’s core offerings include land-based drilling rigs, directional drilling, hydraulic fracturing services, downhole tool rental and well-servicing equipment. By integrating drilling and completion capabilities, Patterson-UTI Energy offers operators a streamlined solution designed to improve operational efficiency and well performance.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Patterson-UTI Energy traces its origins to its founding in 1978 and was later incorporated in Delaware in 1996.