Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $11.14 and last traded at $11.1050, with a volume of 1840034 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.72.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PTEN shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $8.11.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -44.09 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.89.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Patterson-UTI Energy had a negative net margin of 1.94% and a negative return on equity of 1.50%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. will post -0.1 EPS for the current year.

Patterson-UTI Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.10 dividend. This is a boost from Patterson-UTI Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s payout ratio is currently -160.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 164,775 shares of Patterson-UTI Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.18, for a total value of $1,677,409.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP increased its position 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 3,862 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 127.3% in the third 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 period. First Horizon Corp boosted its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 5,554 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,049 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Patterson-UTI Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 187.6% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,591 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 4,299 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Patterson-UTI Energy

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.