Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. Reduces Holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,685 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 5,450 shares during the quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.’s holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy were worth $410,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PTEN. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $301,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in Patterson-UTI Energy by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,191,230 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,840,000 after purchasing an additional 187,900 shares during the period. Monaco Asset Management SAM raised its holdings in Patterson-UTI Energy by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Monaco Asset Management SAM now owns 900,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,434,000 after purchasing an additional 300,000 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new position in Patterson-UTI Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $6,029,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 15,698 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.63.

Patterson-UTI Energy Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PTEN opened at $7.86 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.03 and a 1 year high of $12.65. The company has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 1.99. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $8.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.21.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -12.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James Carl Stewart sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were 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 $238,743.68. This represents a 71.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO William Andrew Hendricks, Jr. bought 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $7.88 per share, with a total value of $197,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,482,592 shares in the company, valued at $19,562,824.96. This trade represents a 1.02 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 358,149 shares of company stock valued at $2,990,766 in the last 90 days. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.