Patterson-UTI Energy Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:PTEN)

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 281,924 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 2,608% compared to the typical daily volume of 10,410 put options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert Wayne Drummond, Jr. sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.55, for a total transaction of $1,732,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,007,895 shares in the company, valued at $23,191,187.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PTEN. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 632,943 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 114,868 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 99,484 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,074,000 after buying an additional 1,506 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 10,010 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 3,196 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,647,627 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,595,000 after buying an additional 88,145 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Patterson-UTI Energy by 162.6% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,908 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $366,000 after buying an additional 20,996 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Patterson-UTI Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PTEN traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $9.02. The company had a trading volume of 5,427,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,944,497. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.95. The stock has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29 and a beta of 2.18. Patterson-UTI Energy has a 1 year low of $8.94 and a 1 year high of $16.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Patterson-UTI Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Patterson-UTI Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Patterson-UTI Energy from $14.00 to $12.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.77.

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.