Patterson-UTI Energy Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 57,700 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 506% compared to the typical daily volume of 9,519 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on PTEN shares. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a report on Monday, May 6th. 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. StockNews.com lowered Patterson-UTI Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $16.00 target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.67.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

Patterson-UTI Energy stock traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $10.31. 1,111,748 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,740,364. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 52-week low of $9.68 and a 52-week high of $16.17. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $10.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.48. The company has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.85 and a beta of 2.18.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.02. Patterson-UTI Energy had a return on equity of 7.13% and a net margin of 4.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Patterson-UTI Energy will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is currently 47.06%.

Insider Activity at Patterson-UTI Energy

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 150,000 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 2,007,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,191,187.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 320.7% in the 1st quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 2,091 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,594 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 66.5% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 3,335 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,332 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 635.8% in the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,002 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 2,594 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 28.5% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,031 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.