Bridgewater Associates LP Sells 118,762 Shares of Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD)

Bridgewater Associates LP cut its holdings in Weatherford International plc (NASDAQ:WFRD) by 87.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,990 shares of the company’s stock after selling 118,762 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in Weatherford International were worth $1,443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WFRD. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $20,584,000. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new stake in Weatherford International during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,132,000. Merewether Investment Management LP boosted its position in Weatherford International by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 549,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,323,000 after acquiring an additional 153,800 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 33.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 631,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,372,000 after acquiring an additional 156,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Weatherford International by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 92,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,373,000 after acquiring an additional 6,165 shares in the last quarter. 97.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Weatherford International Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WFRD opened at $82.30 on Monday. Weatherford International plc has a twelve month low of $77.00 and a twelve month high of $135.00. The firm has a market cap of $5.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.56, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a 50 day moving average of $85.90 and a 200 day moving average of $103.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

Weatherford International (NASDAQ:WFRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.41. Weatherford International had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 46.25%. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Weatherford International plc will post 6.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Weatherford International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. Weatherford International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on WFRD. Bank of America cut their price objective on Weatherford International from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Weatherford International in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $154.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $149.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Weatherford International from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Weatherford International presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $147.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Weatherford International

In other news, CAO Desmond J. Mills sold 6,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total value of $521,565.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,680 shares in the company, valued at $932,764.80. This represents a 35.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David John Reed sold 6,805 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.96, for a total value of $639,397.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

About Weatherford International

Weatherford International plc, an energy services company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil, geothermal, and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Drilling and Evaluation; Well Construction and Completions; and Production and Intervention.