Skylands Capital LLC Sells 25,850 Shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Skylands Capital LLC trimmed its position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 10.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 227,710 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 25,850 shares during the quarter. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $1,881,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PTEN. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 421.0% during the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,214,860 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $84,375,000 after purchasing an additional 8,254,137 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 35.9% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 19,972,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $152,793,000 after purchasing an additional 5,275,525 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,321,667 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $60,477,000 after purchasing an additional 1,743,241 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 15,942.1% during the third quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 1,524,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,500 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 9.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,435,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,352,840 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Patterson-UTI Energy

In other Patterson-UTI Energy news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 230,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.89, for a total transaction of $2,044,700.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,549,081 shares in the company, valued at $13,771,330.09. This trade represents a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.36, for a total value of $588,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 32,438 shares in the company, valued at $238,743.68. The trade was a 71.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Patterson-UTI Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $8.34 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.38 and a beta of 2.07. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $7.15 and a 52-week high of $12.65. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $8.46 and a 200 day moving average of $8.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.54.

Patterson-UTI Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is -12.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James lowered Patterson-UTI Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Patterson-UTI Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy 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.