Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) Short Interest Down 26.7% in March

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 30,414,994 shares, a decline of 26.7% from the February 26th total of 41,466,379 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 12,796,477 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 8.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PTEN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Patterson-UTI Energy from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and set a $6.00 price target (down from $7.00) on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 164,775 shares of the 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Patterson-UTI Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tejara Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 65.1% in the 3rd quarter. Tejara Capital Ltd now owns 554,993 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,875,000 after purchasing an additional 218,856 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,489,694 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,717,000 after purchasing an additional 139,561 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 71.9% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 551,671 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,858,000 after purchasing an additional 230,800 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 728.4% during the third quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 280,919 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,455,000 after buying an additional 247,010 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 14.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 1,367,213 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,082,000 after buying an additional 169,816 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of PTEN stock traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $11.36. The stock had a trading volume of 11,054,467 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,532,389. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a PE ratio of -45.44 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $8.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.46 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 $11.58.

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

Patterson-UTI Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. This is an increase from Patterson-UTI Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is -160.00%.

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.