Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 108,304 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,579 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $895,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 5,678 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,885 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 3,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter worth $85,000. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. purchased 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $7.88 per share, for a total transaction of $197,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,482,592 shares in the company, valued at $19,562,824.96. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total transaction of $588,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,743.68. This trade represents a 71.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 358,149 shares of company stock valued at $2,990,766. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $7.61 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.24. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $7.03 and a one year high of $12.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.08 and a beta of 1.99.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.20%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is -12.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James cut shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy Company Profile

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.